Survivor's Guilt
by lovemondotrasho
Summary: Inuyasha was satisfied with the life he had - what could be better than mating the woman you loved and having an adorable little daughter who took after you more than she took after her mother? Of course his world comes crashing down before his eyes after a tragedy, but what happens when things didn't happen the way he thought?
1. Prologue and The Fire

**Hello everyone! I'm here with another Inuyasha x Kagome fic! I haven't done one in a long ass time and I hope you all like it!**

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Prologue:

After defeating Naraku and with the Shikon Jewel gone, Inuyasha had confessed to Kagome. They had dated for three years before he told her that he had other plans. Kagome was heartbroken. She'd thought that Inuyasha was breaking up with her. After seeing her tears, Inuyasha laughed, called her a stupid wench, and asked her to be his mate. Kagome accepted with tears. They were mated in the Feudal Era. Sango was their "maid of honour," and Miroku was their "best man." Inuyasha had(grudgingly) invited Kouga to the mating ceremony, but warned him that if he so much as laid a hand on Kagome, he'd beat his "scrawny ass" into the next lifetime. Sango and Miroku's twin girls, Misaki and Harumi, were playing with Shippo. Everything was perfect. A couple months later, Kagome told Inuyasha they were having a child. Inuyasha nearly fainted with happiness. Nine months later, Kagome had given birth to a healthy baby girl, Karin. In a few short hours, Karin became the center of Inuyasha's world. Inuyasha and Kagome had the most perfect life possible.

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Chapter one: The Fire

Inuyasha and Kagome were in their room sleeping, with Karin in the next room. Inuyasha and Kagome were particularly tired that night. They'd run after Karin the entire day. Kagome reckoned it was Inuyasha's demon blood. Inuyasha demanded to know what was wrong with that. Kagome had started laughing and took his hand. She told him that she loved his half demon side. It was what made Inuyasha, Inuyasha.

In the afternoon, they were finally able to get some peace when Karin started playing with Misaki, Harumi, and Shippo. Inuyasha and Kagome were kept company by Sango and Miroku, when Kouga and his new mate, Miki came over. In the past year, Inuyasha warmed up to Kouga, but only because after Kagome got married, Kouga realised that marrying Kagome wasn't an option anymore. He'd retreated to the mountains and had met a wolf demoness, Miki, with violet eyes, black hair, and a kind heart. Miki wasn't always so kind. The first few months she'd known Kouga weren't easy on her. She had started to like Kouga, but Kouga wasn't looking for a relationship, causing her to occasionally lash out at his indirect rejection. Little did she know that he was actually starting to warm up to her. He'd always loved a girl with a temper. Her occasional tempers really made Kouga want to spend more time with her. He wanted to know what made her happy and what made her mad. Kouga realised that he was starting to love Miki as much as he loved Kagome, if not more.

After setting Karin down for the night, Inuyasha crawled over to his side of the bed and collapsed. Kagome smiled at Inuyasha's sleeping form. She covered him with a blanket and snuggled into bed next to him.

It was hours before Inuyasha noticed a peculiar smell.

"Kagome," he whispered quietly. "Get up."

Kagome flailed her arms wildly and mumbled in her sleep. "Five more minutes, Souta."

Inuyasha rolled his eyes. "Stupid wench. Get up!" he hissed.

Kagome nearly jumped out of her skin. She looked around wildly. "What the hell, Inuyasha?" When he didn't answer, she noticed that his ears were twitching. "What's wrong?"

"I-I smell something…" he said carefully.

"Are you serious? You wake me up at god know's what time it is to tell me that you smell something?" she yelled.

Inuyasha pretended that he hadn't heard her. "I smell…ash."

Kagome was worried. If there was a fire near by, their wooden hut wouldn't stand a chance. "Where is it coming from?"

Inuyasha concentrated. "Shit," he muttered dashing out the room. He skidded in front of the kitchen which was ablaze.

"INUYASHA!" shouted Kagome. She also skidded in front of the kitchen at stood there in shock with her mouth agape.

Inuyasha turned to her. "GO AND GET KARIN!"

Kagome nodded and hurried toward Karin's room. Inuyasha barely had two minutes to think when he heard his wife's distressed voice call his name. "WHAT'S WRONG, KAGOME?"

She sounded close to tears. No, she was in tears. Inuyasha could smell the salt mingling with the burnt wood. "Karin's room! It's blocked!" screamed Kagome.

Inuyasha's heart stopped. He ran to Karin's room and the door frame was ablaze, yet Karin was soundly asleep. "Kagome, get yourself out. I'll get Karin."

"I'm not leaving without you!"

Damn her stubbornness. Inuyasha leapt over the flames and swiftly scooped Karin in his arms. "KAGOME! GET THE HELL OUT!"

She nodded, but waited for Inuyasha to be by her side. They were running out when part of the ceiling caved in and collapsed. It fell and landed on Kagome's right leg.

"KAGOME!" shouted Inuyasha. He tried to pull the roof off of Kagome, but it wouldn't budge.

Her eyes were sad. "Take Karin, I'll be fine," she whispered.

"Kagome, don't be stupid!" yelled Inuyasha.

"INUYASHA!"

He saw the fire in her chocolate eyes. He reluctantly sped out of the hut, leaving his wife behind. Once he made it outside, he saw Miroku, Sango, the twins, Kouga, Miki, and Shippo.

"Inuyasha! What the hell happened?" screamed Miroku.

"Where's Kagome?" asked Sango.

Inuyasha nearly threw Karin at Kouga. "Take Karin, you mangy wolf! Kagome's still inside!"

"SHE'S STILL INSIDE?" yelped Miki.

"YES!" shouted Inuyasha. He was about to sprint back into the hut when he felt a hand on his robe. It was Miroku. "LET GO OF ME, YOU FUCKING LECHER!"

"INUYASHA, LISTEN TO ME! Look at Karin! D'you want her to lose her mother and her father in one night?" he asked furiously.

"MIROKU!" screamed Sango.

"SHE'S NOT DEAD, STUPID!" roared Inuyasha. "I have to go save her!"

"It's no use Inuyasha," said Shippo sadly with tears in his emerald eyes. "The hut is in flames."

Inuyasha spun around and saw his hut being burnt down to the ground. With Kagome still inside. "KAGOME!"

His yelling had woken Karin up. She began to wail loudly in Kouga's arms, not knowing that she'd never see her mother again. Kouga gently rocked her back to sleep.

"Shh. Karin, go back to sleep," he whispered.

Inuyasha beat his fists on the ground. "I could've saved her! If I hadn't listened…" he trailed off.

"Hadn't listened to what?" asked Sango bouncing Misaki on her hip.

There were tears in Inuyasha's eyes. He looked at the ground. "The ceiling…crashed," he choked. "It fell on Kagome. I tried to save her, but sh-she told me to get myself out safely with Karin."

Miroku took Harumi in his arms. "It's not your fault, Yash," he said soothingly.

"IT IS MY FAULT!" he shouted with tears. "And because of my stupidity, my daughter will now grow up without a mother."

Miki was at a loss for words. Sango handed Misaki to Miroku and hugged Inuyasha. "No no. It's not your fault. Yes, Karin will grow up without a mother. But she'll know why…why she died," Sango gasped.

Inuyasha looked up. Sango's face was glazed with tears.

"Inuyasha, you have to help Karin through this," said Kouga quietly. "You know what it's like losing a mother. You loved Kagome…as much as Karin would have." He handed Karin to Inuyasha. She was fast asleep again.

Inuyasha looked down at his sleeping daughter's face. She reminded him of Kagome. He didn't think he could do this.

"You can do this, Inuyasha," said Shippo, as if he'd read Inuyasha's mind. "You can do this," he repeated shakily.

Inuyasha held Karin close to him and watched the hut be consumed in flames.

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**Fires and death...what a wonderful way to start a fic, isn't it? But don't worry, it's an Inuyasha x Kagome fic for a reason. Not gonna say too much here. It has too much to do with the plot. Hope I haven't lost anyone of you, and if I have...well, I don't really know what to say to you guys. Read and Review. Oh what the hell, flame if you want. It doesn't bother me. **

**PS: For all of you people who are Kouga x Ayame shippers, sorry. I had to create an OC for Kouga. I just don't feel that he was really happy with marrying her in the anime. So if you're going to flame on that, carry on. **

**Happy Readings!**


	2. What Was She Like?

**New chapter! Hope you guys like it! Thanks to everyone who read and a special thanks to Duchess Rose for being the first person to Story Alert, CityOfFallenAshes for being the first person to Favourite, and KiraraGoesMeow for being the first person to Story Alert, Favourite and Review!**

**KiraraGoesMeow: It's a very pleasant chapter. This is actually one of the first fics I ever wrote, but I was scared to put it up because of the character death. My friend stole my notebook, flipped through the pages and demanded to know why Survivor's Guilt wasn't up xD Glad you like it so far! **

**Hope you enjoy Chapter two!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha. All rights go to Rumiko Takahashi. **

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Chapter two: What Was She Like?

"Daddy! Daddy! What're you thinking about?" asked a little black haired girl.

Inuyasha was snapped from his thoughts and looked down at the girl. It'd been five years since the fire. Five years since Kagome died. Karin had grown into an adorable hanyou demon, but she reminded Inuyasha of Kagome everyday. "I was thinking about Mommy," he said heavily.

"My mommy or your mommy?" she asked.

Tears collected in his eyes. "Your mommy."

Karin climbed onto Inuyasha's lap and looked up at him seriously. "Are you sad, Daddy?"

Inuyasha gave him a small smile, trying to hold his tears in. "Of course I'm sad, Karin. I loved your Mommy."

"Tell me about her," she demanded.

Inuyasha looked down, unable to face his daughter and look her in the eyes. She really reminded him of Kagome then. Karin was part demon like Inuyasha, but she was human now. Karin only transformed on the day of the summer solstice, but unlike Inuyasha, Karin was human by day and demon by night. It was sinister, how much Karin resembled Kagome. She had dark wavy hair and big brown eyes. Inuyasha pulled Karin in a gentle hug.

"You look just like Mommy. She had long black hair and brown eyes," said Inuyasha. "She knew I couldn't say no to whatever she wanted."

Karin giggled. "That's like me."

"Mmhhmm. She had a habit of never listening to me. But she'd get very mad when I didn't listen to her."

Karin's smile slid off her face. "She'd you-know-what you, right?" she asked.

Inuyasha's hand instinctively flew up at the beaded necklace that Kaede placed around his neck so many years ago. Karin had inherited her mother's power of being able to "sit" Inuyasha. Karin was careful not to say the actual word and send Inuyasha face down into the earth.

"Yeah," whispered Inuyasha.

"What else?" asked Karin.

"She was a complete scatterbrain. And the clumsiest person I knew, though Auntie Miki could give her a run for her money," said Inuyasha laughing a little. "But your Uncle Souta called her: Kagome the Klutz."

Karin grinned. "Uncle Souta told me. He and Gramma have lots of stories about Mommy."

"Your mother was human. Not part demon like you and I," continued Inuyasha.

"Like Auntie Rin?" asked Karin.

Inuyasha sighed. Even Sesshomaru was happily married. But on the bright side, Rin was a great sister-in-law. Or at least didn't kill him every time she saw him. "Yeah. Like Auntie Rin."

Karin wanted to know more, but she was afraid that Inuyasha would get mad at her. "Daddy, how did Mommy die?"

_Oh god. How do I do this without losing it, thought Inuyasha._

Karin noticed the sadness in her father's eyes. She tugged on his baggy, red robe. "You don't have to tell me. You're too sad."

Inuyasha wiped his eyes. "No, I'll tell you." He took a deep breath. "Baby, you were only a couple months old. One day, before the sun was awake, our kitchen caught on fire. Mommy tried to get you out of your room, but the door was on fire too." Karin silently listened as Inuyasha's voice started to shake. "I jumped over the flames and got you out of your crib. Mommy waited for me. I kept telling her to leave without me, but she wouldn't listen."

"Why didn't he listen, Daddy?" asked Karin. "She would be right here."

A tear leaked out of Inuyasha's eye. Then a tear turned into many tears. They were creeping down the side of his face. He closed his eyes tightly, not wanting to relive it anymore, but he owed at least this much to his own daughter. "She wanted to make sure we were OK. We were all getting out of the hut when the roof fell on Mommy." Now, Inuyasha's tears were steadily flowing down his face. He'd completely lost it in front of his own daughter. Karin never saw her father cry. Ever. She held onto his robe and gave him a little kiss on the cheek. Inuyasha opened his eyes and found himself staring at Karin. She gave him a small smile.

"Don't be sad, Daddy. It's OK," she said.

"I tried," he croaked. "I tried to save her. But it was too late. When I got you out, the hut was completely on fire." His only daughter was growing up without a mother. And it was all his fault. _Why did I listen to her? I could've saved both of them!_

Karin noticed the look on her father's face and didn't know what to do. "Daddy? Are you OK?"

Inuyasha hastily brushed his tears away and forced a smile on his face. "Yeah. I'm just missing Mommy is all. Go play with Harumi, Misaki, or Shippo."

"Can I play with Mamoru?" she asked.

Inuyasha hesitated. His daughter…playing with Kouga's son…_Kagome would want her to. _"Just be careful. Mamoru isn't very big yet. He's smaller than you."

Karin gave him a big smile. "I will, Daddy!" she exclaimed, running off.

Inuyasha sighed as he watched her tear off into the fields, looking for the kids.

Meanwhile, Sango, Miroku, Kouga, and Miki were watching from a nearby bush. Miki and Sango were close to tears. Kouga, who normally would have laughed at Inuyasha for crying, didn't have the heart to even insult him. Kouga had long given up on teasing Inuyasha. Mainly because it got on Kagome's nerves, but he'd still poke fun every now and then. Now that Kagome was gone, Kouga felt like Inuyasha had gone through hell and didn't need any more grief. Miroku's eyes were dull and sad looking.

"He's so heartbroken!" exclaimed Sango.

"Losing Kagome has been really hard on him," said Miki. "And raising their daughter alone on top of that."

"I don't know what I'd do if I'd lost Miki in an accident," said Kouga, taking Miki's hand. She began to blush and decided to look down, letting her hair cover her eyes.

"If I'd lost Sango…I don't know what I'd do either," said Miroku.

Sango scoffed. "Please. You'd most likely ask the next woman you saw to bear you a child!"

Miroku pretended to gasp. "Sango! After all these years? That's how much confidence you have in me?"

"C'mon Sango," said Miki. "Miroku loves you too much. He'd be heartbroken if you died."

"You know, I thought that Inuyasha would've committed suicide the day after Kagome died," Kouga said quietly. Kouga felt something hit the back of his head. "What the hell? INUYASHA!"

They all turned around and saw Inuyasha. He looked defeated. "I would've committed suicide. But I couldn't do that to Karin," he said slowly. "I didn't want her to grow up without **any** parents." With that, Inuyasha turned on his heel and sped off.

"He's still hurting," said Miki sadly.

"It's survivor's guilt," said Sango gravely.

"Survivor's guilt?" asked Kouga.

"Yeah. I felt that way when I thought Kohaku had died," explained Sango. "I felt so bad. I felt so guilty that Kohaku had died and I couldn't do a single thing to save him. Inuyasha has been beating himself up for five years now because he thinks it's his fault Kagome died."

"The way things happened…Kagome made it clear that she wanted Inuyasha to save Karin at all costs," said Kouga.

"He saved her," said Miroku, watching Karin happily play with Misaki, Harumi, Shippo, and Mamoru. "But at her expense."

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**Another rather depressing chapter. Don't worry, it'll lighten up from here. Well, no. There will be another chapter or two that'll be depressing, but then it'll pick up from there. I promise. Read and review. Flame if you want. 'til the next chapter, Happy Reading!**


	3. The Arrow

**It feels so weird to be updating today. Maybe it's because this time last week, I was cramming for my math exam while trying to finish my history paper. But I'm glad to be writing for myself and you guys this time. Writing for academic purposes is a pain in the ass. So many requirements that won't be met...Any who, thank you to Elizabeth8860 and KiraraGoesMeow for reviewing the last chapter! **

**Elizabeth8860: Writing chapter two was so hard. I burst into tears halfway through. Gosh, I don't even know how I was able to finish that. Thank you so much! **

**KiraraGoesMeow: Karin inherited a couple things from her mom. Her physical features,(when she's human, of course) her ability to "sit" Inuyasha, and her ability to travel between the Feudal Era and Kagome's time. Inuyasha takes her to visit Souta and Mrs. Higurashi a couple times a week. They'll come into the story soon. Thank you so much! **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha. All rights go to Rumiko Takahashi.**

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Chapter three: The Arrow

Karin was happily playing with Harumi, Misaki, Shippo, and Mamoru. She was laughing at Shippo transforming into a spinning top. Mamoru toddled near Shippo, then…POOF! Shippo changed back into his kitsune form.

"No no, Mamoru. No playing with the top," said Shippo wagging a finger. "Your Daddy wouldn't like that."

"Ship! Ship! Ship!" gurgled the three year old wolf youkai.

"Karin! Watch this!" shouted Misaki.

Karin turned and saw Misaki take a small, handmade boomerang and aim it at a nearby tree. She focused her energy and released the boomerang.

"HIRAIKOTSU!" she shouted. The make-shift boomerang hit the tree, making a quiet thudding sound.

"That's like Auntie Sango's weapon," giggled Karin.

"Misaki," said Shippo. "Be careful. You'll get hurt one day."

Misaki laughed. "No I won't."

"So what are we doing here?"

The kids turned around and found Kouga standing behind them with Miki trailing behind.

"Kouga! Honestly…How many times have I told you? Not everyone can run as fast as you!" puffed Miki.

Kouga chuckled. "Ahh, sorry Miki. Must've slipped my mind. Though you make up for it with your patience," he said smiling.

"What are you doing?" Miki asked the children, ignoring Kouga's remark.

"Playing," said Harumi idly.

"Is that so?" asked Kouga. He ran over to the tree and picked up the small boomerang. "Because it looks like someone's pretending to be just like their mommy."

Misaki began to blush a little. "Give it back, Uncle Kouga!"

Kouga handed it back to her, laughing. "Now where's Mamoru?"

The toddler peeked out from behind a tree. "Here I yam, Daddy," he chirped.

Miki scooped him up and tickled his stomach. "It's nap time for a certain wolf."

"Nap time for Daddy!" exclaimed Mamoru.

"Nice try, squirt," said Kouga. "Harumi, Misaki, your mommy and daddy are calling you for lunch. Karin, your daddy's calling you for lunch and a nap."

"OK, Uncle Kouga! Bye Auntie Miki! Bye Mamoru! Bye Shippo!" called the three girls.

Misaki and Harumi sped off in one direction and Karin, in the other. She started running as fast as she could to the hut. Karin was pretty fast, but not as fast as Kouga or Inuyasha. She heard something rustle behind her. Karin slowed down and looked around. Nothing was there. Suddenly…

WHOOSH!

Something flew past Karin. It had just grazed her left cheek. Karin heard a quiet thud behind her. She raised a hand to her cheek and felt a long, thin cut. Karin turned around and saw an arrow had hit the tree behind her. She was feeling scared now. Usually, when someone tried to attack her, Inuyasha was with her. He would beat the demon and cuddle Karin close to him. Karin saw a flash of red and white. Then a face. Perfectly sculpted cheek bones, chocolate brown eyes, black bangs…The woman aimed again. This time, she was aiming directly at Karin.

"DADDY!" she screamed.

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Inuyasha had been heating water in a small kettle over a fire. He smiled to himself, remembering all of the good times he'd shared with Kagome before her untimely death. The time when they were hunting for the jewel shards. They would spend hours talking. As they were talking, Kagome would sneeze and insist that it was because someone was gossiping about her. He smiled to himself. _Stupid wench...No one would ever gossip about her. _Inuyasha turned to the table and took two cups of instant noodles. He peeled back the paper covering and poured the water over the dry noodles.

"Where is Karin?" Inuyasha wondered aloud. "I'm pretty sure Kouga told her that it's lunchtime, and besides, she loves Ramen."

He turned back to the noodles. Then a faint odor tickled his nose. _It's faint, but I can smell...blood. _His back stiffened when he realised who's blood he was smelling. Inuyasha's ears twitched.

"DADDY!"

The sound echoed in Inuyasha's ears. It was Karin. She sounded scared. And that's all he needed. Inuyasha threw the cup down and ran out of the hut as fast as he could. He began to try to sniff her out. He was certain that it was Karin's blood he was smelling. She was bleeding! _If I find the bastard who did this…_

Inuyasha found Karin looking around wildly. He ran over to her and held her close to him. "Karin, are you OK?"

Karin was shaking. "The lady…"

"What lady?" asked Inuyasha.

Karin pointed to the trees in front of her. "She was right there. Now she's gone. The lady aimed at me."

Inuyasha pulled away from Karin. He surveyed the cut on her cheek. It wasn't too deep, but why did someone attack her? Suddenly Inuyasha noticed the tree behind Karin. An arrow was stuck to the tree. Arrows reminded Inuyasha of his past. He looked up and realised that this was the Goshinboku. He had a vague idea of who the "lady" was, but there were two suspects. Both had died years ago. The first was Kikyo, the miko who had died nearly sixty years ago. Kikyo had pinned Inuyasha to the very same tree before she had died. The possibility of the woman being Kikyo was very likely. Kikyo had a history of returning to life. The other was someone that Inuyasha had dreamt about every single night since the accident. Someone he wanted alive and with him again. That person was his deceased wife, Kagome.

Inuyasha quietly got up and pried the arrow out of the tree. He closed his eyes and twirled the arrow in his hands. The scent…it was muddled. It smelled like both Kikyo and Kagome. Inuyasha was confused. He was sure both had died. Kikyo's spirit was freed and she died peacefully in his arms. Kagome had died in the fire. As soon as the fire was put out, Inuyasha ran into the hut. The only things that were left were burnt remnants of Inuyasha's life with Kagome.

"Daddy? Are you OK?" asked Karin.

Inuyasha turned to her with a grim expression. "Yeah. I'm fine. Just confused. C'mon, let's go home now," said Inuyasha taking her hand. In his other hand, he held the arrow. The arrow that might possibly belong to his wife. He needed to take it back to the village.

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**I'm pretty sure lots of questions are swirling around in your mind. Don't worry, they'll all be answered in time. Read and review. 'Til the next chapter...**


	4. Sadness and Unintentional Hurt

**Updates, updates, and more updates! It seems like all I've done this weekend is update! Thanks to KiraraGoesMeow and xXxAddicted2ChocolatexXx for reviewing the last chapter!**

******KiraraGoesMeow: I can't answer that question because it has too much to do with the plot. Sorry. For my story, the well always worked after Kagome married Inuyasha. And after she died, Inuyasha could still go through it with Karin to visit Mrs. Higurashi and Souta. **

**********xXxAddicted2ChocolatexXx: *cries* Aww! You're too sweet! Sorry this couldn't be up sooner, what with exams and everything...I can't really say too much about the woman because it has too much to do with the plot. **

**********Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha.**

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Chapter four: Sadness and Unintentional Hurt

Inuyasha had started walking back to the village. Karin toddled after him. She saw that his brow was furrowed, meaning that he was deep in thought about something. "What's wrong, Daddy?"

Inuyasha didn't hear her. He was too focused on the arrow in his hand. _Does this arrow really belong to Kagome? _He tried not to get his hopes up, but he couldn't help it. How many times does a widow get actual proof of their spouse being alive?

Karin took her father's robes and shook them when she didn't get an answer. "Daddy! What's wrong?" she shouted.

Inuyasha looked down at his daughter. He sighed as he picked her up and looked her in the eyes. He sat down with her and let her hold the arrow. "Karin, there are only two people who could've shot this arrow."

She looked down at the arrow. "Only two?"

He nodded. "Only two," he repeated. He took a deep breath before speaking again. "One was a priestess named Kikyo. She was Lady Kaede's older sister. Kikyo died over sixty years ago, but she always had a way of coming back to life." Inuyasha closed his eyes. _Of all the things that could've happened in my miserable life..._ "And the other," said Inuyasha, pausing. _Should I tell her? _He bit his lip. "The other was your Mommy, Karin."

Karin's eyes grew wide. Her mouth was in the shape of an 'O' and she dropped the arrow. "Mommy's still alive?" she asked.

Inuyasha closed his eyes again, silently berating himself. He hated the way Karin got happy. It's not that he wanted to lie to her, but what if the arrow wasn't Kagome's after all? What would he do then? _Why the hell did I tell her? She sounds so happy... _"Maybe. But I'm not sure. We have to tell Lady Kaede and-"

Karin hopped down from Inuyasha's arms before he could finish his sentence. She had taken off, full speed to the village. "C'mon Daddy!" she shouted. "Let's tell Lady Kaede!"

Inuyasha facepalmed himself. "Why did I tell her? I've only made things worse!" Inuyasha picked the arrow up and sighed. He sped off toward the village in an effort to explain himself to Kaede before Karin spilled her side of the story. _Please don't get there before I do. Please don't get there before I do. Please? _When he finally got there, he found Karin excitedly waving her hands and Kaede sitting in front of her and an open flame, tapping her chin and nodding.

"Aye. I understand, child," said Kaede eyeing Inuyasha. She cleared her throat. "Why don't ye go home and sleep. Ye seem like ye hasn't had your nap today."

Karin smiled. "OK, Lady Kaede!" She turned around and saw Inuyasha standing in the doorway. She was completely oblivious to the fact that Inuyasha was shaking because of what Kaede could possibly do. "Oh, hi Daddy! I'm going to take a nap now!" she said, tearing out of the hut.

Inuyasha felt Kaede's eyes narrow at him. He sweatdropped. "Uhh, I'll tuck you in, Karin!"

He tried to leave the hut when Kaede spoke. "Inuyasha, Karin has been telling me quite a story. A story that is about young Kagome being alive."

Inuyasha scratched the back of his head, wildly trying to decide what to tell Kaede. He looked down at the arrow in his hand. He slowly twirled it in his hand and closed his eyes. Kaede raised an eyebrow at Inuyasha's actions. Then her eyes fell on the arrow. "Where did ye get that arrow, Inuyasha?" she asked. She knew of his past with arrows. She knew that after Kagome died, Inuyasha didn't so much as look at an arrow.

Inuyasha crouched down so that he was sitting in front of her. He handed the arrow over and sighed, staring at the flames. He had a sudden urge to put the flame out. The flame...it was the reason Kagome had died. He jerked his head up and looked at Kaede. "I found it on the Goshinboku!" he blurted. "Karin was attacked by a woman with arrows."

"Hmm." She twirled the arrow in her hands just as Inuyasha had. "This arrow...It is one of Kagome's sacred arrows," she said slowly. "I can sense her power. It is in the core of this arrow. And it is strong."

Inuyasha's ears perked up at her words. "Kagome might be alive?"

Kaede put the arrow and sighed at his eagerness. "There is a slight possibility that someone could harbour the same amount of power as Kagome, but it is highly unlikely. What throws me off is the fact that she would attack her own daughter...And she missed too."

Inuyasha picked the arrow up and examined it closely. _Did this arrow belong to Kagome? Did she ever shoot with this arrow? _

Kaede saw the look on Inuyasha's face and broke the silence again. "Inuyasha, did ye not go back to the hut after the fire? What was left?"

Inuyasha paused for a minute and racked his brains, trying to remember. _It was all ashes. Wasn't it?_ "I-uh...nothing. Absolutely nothing was left."

Kaede suddenly got up and paced around the small hut. She turned around and glanced at the arrow and then at Inuyasha. "Inuyasha, did it never occur to ye that there is a possibility that Kagome is still alive."

Inuyasha jumped up. "Of course it did, you old hag!" he shouted. His face fell. "Only every waking moment of my life. The fact that nothing was left makes it even more-" Tears began collecting in his eyes. He tried to hold them back, but one or two escaped when he blinked his golden eyes. "Losing Kagome...was nothing I ever expected. I never thought that she'd actually leave me forever."

Kaede nodded. "Inuyasha, I did not want to say anything because Kagome had just died, but."

Inuyasha stared at her. "BUT WHAT?" he shouted.

She hesitated again. "When we cremated Kikyo, all that was left was a bundle of Chinese Bell flowers."

_A bundle of Chinese Bell flowers? What the hell is she getting at? I swear, she's getting way too old..._"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" asked Inuyasha.

"It is common with all mikos," explained Kaede. "When mikos are cremated, they leave behind something that is associated with their name. Kiyko means Chinese Bell flower. Inuyasha, what does 'Kagome' mean?"

Inuyasha turned around, not wanting to hear anymore. Just the thought of Kaede knowing something more about Kagome's death angered him. He and his daughter went through hell because of that accident and all this time, Kaede knew something that they didn't.

"Bird cage," he whispered at the wall. He got up and stomped out of the hut, but not before yanking the arrow out of Kaede's hand. He was making his way toward his hut to tuck Karin in when he knocked Kouga and Miroku over. Sango and Miki was sitting on the grass, talking to each other. Kouga and Miroku got up and brushed themselves off.

"Sorry," he said hastily. He tried to leave before anyone could question him about the arrow. He didn't think he'd be able to hold himself together a second time.

Sango and Miki looked up and smiled at him. "Hey Inuyasha!" they both called.

"What's up, Yash?" asked Miroku.

"Nothing," he growled, still clutching the arrow. "I'll be going now. Gotta tuck Karin in." He was starting to make a break for it.

Kouga's eyes swiveled down to the arrow in Inuyasha's hand. He pulled the arrow away from him and brought it close to his eyes. He looked up at Inuyasha. "Where did you get this arrow?" he demanded, glaring at him.

Miki slowly rose and took Kouga's arm. "What's wrong, Kouga?"

Kouga yanked his arm away and continued to glare at Inuyasha. "Answer me, Inuyasha."

Inuyasha was getting pretty suspicious. If the arrow made Kouga react like that…Then what Kaede said might be true!

Sango also got up and joined the four of them. Her eyes darted over to the arrow in Kouga's hand. "What's with the arrow?" she asked.

Inuyasha sighed. "I found that on the Goshinboku. Karin was attacked by some woman with arrows."

Kouga's eyes widened. He shoved the arrow in Inuyasha's face. "This is Kagome's arrow! I'm sure of it! Her scent is all over it!"

Inuyasha was about to speak when he was interrupted by Miki. Her amethyst eyes were filled with hurt. "Kouga, are you sure? It's been five years."

Kouga turned to her. "This is Kagome's arrow," he repeated. "I know her scent anywhere!"

"Kouga-" started Miroku.

Miki tossed her black hair over her shoulder, crossed her arms and looked him in the eyes. "Not even Inuyasha could figure that out and he was her mate. What does that say, Kouga?"

Kouga was absolutely silent. He didn't know how to respond. Inuyasha looked at Miki and then at Kouga. "Shit," muttered Inuyasha. _Why does Kouga have to be such a dumbass? _He really didn't want Miki to be angry because of this. She tended to be violent when she was angry and it wasn't a pretty sight. "Miki-"

"What does that say, Kouga?" she shouted. Tears leaked out of her eyes. "Does this mean you still love her?"

Kouga looked appalled that she'd even suggest such a thing. He tossed the arrow at Inuyasha. He took Miki's hand, but she yanked it away just as he had minutes before. "Of course not! Miki-"

She continued as if he hadn't said anything. "Kouga, you moved on because Kagome married Inuyasha. What if she never got married, huh? Would you still love me?"

Inuyasha shifted guiltily on his left foot. _If I hadn't had the arrow in plain sight…_He stared off into the distance. He'd always hated it when women cried. It didn't help that Miki had grown on Inuyasha. She was like a sister to him as was Sango who shot Kouga a steely glare.

Miroku jabbed him in the ribs. "Apologise!" he hissed.

"How can you say that? Miki, I love you! You're my mate and the mother of our child!"

Miki wiped her tears and gave Kouga a cold, hard look. "If you can still pinpoint her scent after five years, I don't know what to say to you."

"Kouga, do something," hissed Sango.

It was too late. Miki had turned on her heel and sped off deep into the forest behind them. Kouga stood there dumbstruck as to what just happened. Inuyasha winced when Miki left. He turned to Kouga, expecting to see him run after her. He shook his head when he saw him stand there with his mouth hanging open. He gripped the hilt of his Tetsusaiga and struck Kouga with it.

"What the hell, Inuyasha?" he shouted, rubbing his head.

"Don't just sit there, you dumbass," said Inuyasha putting the Tetsusaiga back around his waist. "You love her, do you not?"

Kouga looked at Sango and Miroku and then at his feet. "I love her more than I love myself."

"And where was that five minutes ago?" muttered Sango.

"Are you sure?" asked Inuyasha.

Kouga glared at Inuyasha. "Of course I am! What kind of question is that? If I still loved Kagome, would I have moved on and gotten mated?"

Inuyasha gave him a sad look. "What are you doing telling me? Go find Miki and tell her. Hold her. Cherish her." He looked at the sky with a small smile. "Because after all, accidents can happen."

Kouga nodded before racing off in the direction that Miki sped off in only minutes before. Miroku sighed. "Kouga loves Miki more than she knows."

"What are you talking about, Miroku? Because to Miki, it seems like Kouga never got over Kagome." said Sango.

"Wasn't there another wolf demoness?" asked Inuyasha.

Miroku nodded. "Shortly after Kouga told us that he liked Miki, another wolf demoness asked him to be her mate. Her name was Ayame."

"Ayame?" asked Sango. "Isn't she the granddaughter of the Northern Wolf tribe leader?"

"A political marriage. It would've made Kouga the leader of the entire Wolf demon tribe," said Miroku.

"Only Kouga refused," said Inuyasha.

"So you're saying that Kouga, the leader of the Eastern Wolf tribe, refused to marry Ayame, the granddaughter of the Northern Wolf tribe, because he was in love with Miki?"

"That's exactly what I'm saying. Kouga pretty much gave up being the leader of the entire Wolf demon tribe because he loved Miki."

Inuyasha faced away from them. He looked up at the sky again, wishing that Kagome was still with him. And Karin...She'd gone through so much without Kagome. Sango noticed the look on Inuyasha's face and hugged him. "I know…that these past five years have been hard on you," she said finally. "Not only did you handle that well, you just made a relationship stronger."

Inuyasha pulled himself out of Sango's grasp. "What good is it making a relationship stronger if it's not mine?" he asked.

Miroku and Sango looked at each other and looked away. Inuyasha stomped away toward the hut.

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**Wow, this may be my longest chapter yet...Way to go, Kouga. Way to anger your mate. Inuyasha's really hurt because of the arrow. He's just not showing it. *sigh* Studying...oh well. Read and review. Flame if you want. 'Til the next chapter...**


	5. The Woman Strikes Again

**Last update of the weekend! Hope you all enjoyed it. I didn't. Yes, I got to update and see all of your reactions, but I had a terrible allergic reaction all weekend. *sigh* Thanks to CityOfFallenAshes, StrikerTheWolf, and xXxAddicted2ChocolatexXx for reviewing the last chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha. **

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Chapter five: The Woman Strikes Again

Miki tore off into the forest as fast as she could. Her vision was slightly blurred because of her tears. When she decided she was far away so that no one would follow her, she decided to stop running. She spotted an old tree trunk and sat down on it, sighing.

"Kouga…" she whispered. She kicked a rock and stared at the growing grass. She wiped her tears. "Maybe it's because I'm, quote, a whiny brat according to Sesshomaru." She closed her eyes, remembering her last encounter with the Lord of the Western Lands. It wasn't a pleasant one considering Sesshomaru insulted her over and over. Rin had scolded Sesshomaru, but the words had already been said. _Am I really a whiny brat? Is this why Kouga doesn't love me? _

Miki sighed again. "What am I doing? I have a son. I can't just leave because my mate might possibly be in love with someone else." She started back toward the village, but took her time. She was still hurt by Kouga's words and wanted to delay seeing him again.

Her ears began to twitch. She looked around, searching for the source of the noise. A flash of red and white appeared before her, but disappeared all too quickly. "What the hell?"

She felt something penetrate her skin on her back. It was sharp and wobbled slightly once it hit her. Then she felt the same sensation close to where she felt the first. She reached behind her and felt the slender base of an arrow. She turned around and saw a woman standing by a tree. She had black hair and chocolate eyes. Her shaggy black bangs hung down, almost covering her eyes. The look in her eyes…It was almost cold. She raised her bow and aimed another arrow at Miki.

Everything around Miki began to spin. Her vision started to blur again. This time, everything was darkening. She was suddenly weak-kneed. She lost her balance and fell. The arrows were upright on her back.

The woman lowered her bow and walked over to Miki. She pulled one of the arrows out. No response. Not even a shudder. She wiped the blood off on the grass and knelt down by Miki's ear.

"You…You're Kouga's new mate," she whispered. "Pity he can't see you die." She rose and walked away from Miki and deeper into the forest.

Kouga raced through the forest. Millions of thoughts were swirling in his mind, but the main one was that Miki had run away for good. _God, I'm such a dumbass! How could I hurt her feelings like that? Sure, she does whine sometimes, but I love her to death. I'd never be able to forgive myself if something happened to her because of this. _

It was like he was running around in circles. "Where the hell could she have gone?" he shouted.

Suddenly he stopped running. He was deep in thought. He could've sworn he smelt blood. Blood…and wildflowers? "Oh shit!" he yelled, taking off again. He was smelling Miki's blood. "If someone hurt her-" Kouga tried to pinpoint where her scent was coming from. It was getting stronger. "MIKI!"

He saw a tree trunk and not too far from it…Miki, face down. More importantly, she had a small but growing blood stain on her back. Kouga was horrified. There was an arrow sticking out of her back. He ran over to her. He gently eased the arrow out of her back. His eyes began to mist when she didn't react. He turned her on her side. Her face was pale. He began to search for her pulse. It was even. Kouga let out a sigh of relief. "Miki," he whispered.

His blood began to boil. How dare someone do this to his mate? How dare they? He didn't give a flying fuck who did this, they would pay with their life. Miki began to stir, interrupting Kouga's thoughts. His heart beat faster when he looked down at her.

"K-Kouga?" she stuttered.

He sighed in relief. A tear or two escaped his eyes, but he didn't care. His mate was OK. He held her close to him, being mindful of her injuries. "Shh, It's OK, my beautiful princess." He closed his eyes. "I've got you."

"Kouga, I'm sorry," she whispered. "I'll try be less whiny and annoying."

Kouga pulled away from her in shock. _Stupid girl…_"Miki, you've got nothing to be sorry for. I should've taken into account of how my words would affect you."

She looked up at him. Her eyes were still cold. "Don't lie to me, Kouga. I know you think I'm annoying. Sesshomaru does."

Kouga hesitated. _I don't want to be a monster, but I don't want to lie to her. _"Sesshomaru thinks that everything that walks is annoying. Yes, you do whine sometimes and you're not modest at times, but I love you." He took her hand and pressed it to his cheek. "If I still loved Kagome, would I have mated you?"

Her body began to slacken. Her vision was getting fuzzy again. "I know I'm a pain in the ass sometimes. And-" Her body gave out and she slipped out of consciousness.

Kouga's eyes grew wide. "Miki? Miki! NO!" He got up and carefully steadied Miki in his arms. He took off back to the village, making sure he took the arrow with him. Only one thing was on his mind as he raced back. _When I find the bastard who did this…_

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**Kouga's pretty pissed off about this. I hope Miki was less annoying in this chapter. A lot of people said that she was annoying and full of herself and I wanted to tone it down for you guys. Read and review. Flame if you want. Hope you all had a better Memorial weekend than I did!**


	6. Kouga Hides More Than He Lets On

**This took so much time to edit. I have no idea why. I feel like this wasn't one of my greatest chapters, but I'll let you guys be the judge of that. Thanks to KiraraGoesMeow for reviewing the last chapter!**

**I apologise in advance for any grammatical errors/things that don't make sense. I don't have a beta reader, and while I go over my chapters about ten thousand times, there are things that I will miss. **

**Enjoy the chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha.**

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Chapter Six: Kouga Hides More Than He Lets On

Kouga was running as fast as he could, but it wasn't fast enough. His own mate was attacked just moments before. Suddenly, Kouga felt something warm and sticky on his forearm. He slowed down for a minute and carefully pulled his right arm out from under Miki. He was horrified to see that she had begun to bleed again. _At this rate, Miki's going to bleed out!_ He angrily glared at the arrow around his waist. He knew that the person who attacked Miki was the same person who attempted to attack Karin. His blood began to boil again. The very thought of it made him angry._ Why would Kagome want to hurt Miki? They were good friends. Unless…it's not Kagome? _

The entire ordeal just made Kouga furious. He realised that this was partly his fault. If he hadn't reacted the way he did when he saw the arrow, none of this would've happened. He silently berated himself when he saw her pale face. His mate was suffering, and it was all because of him. He ran faster. His thoughts returned to the arrow. The arrow that he, himself, pulled out of Miki's back.

The trees began to lessen and he saw more huts. He started to slow down. He saw a mass of red and completely lost it. "INUYASHA! GET YOUR FUCKING ASS OVER HERE!"

Inuyasha turned around, completely bewildered. He rolled his eyes and made his way toward Kouga. "What is it, you mangy wolf?" His eyes fell on the demoness in Kouga's arms. "What the hell happened? I thought you were going to make up with her!"

Kouga shot a steely glare at Inuyasha. "I did apologize, dumbass. I found her like this! All because of your mate!" he roared.

Inuyasha was completely taken aback. "Kagome? She's not fucking alive! How could she have done this?"

Kouga pulled the arrow off of his waist and threw it at Inuyasha. "Take a better look at what did this to her!"

Kaede pushed her way through with Sango and Miroku not too far behind. Sango was holding Misaki and Harumi's hands. Misaki rubbed her eyes. "Ahhh, Uncle Kouga? What happened to Auntie Miki?"

"She fell asleep," said Harumi softly.

Miroku heard the twins words and looked over at Kouga. He noticed Kouga's bloodstained clothes and an unconscious Miki in his arms. "Kouga, what happened to Miki?" he demanded.

Kouga jerked his head toward Inuyasha. "Ask this albino runt what happened," he spat. "His mate fucking did this to mine!"

Kaede's eyes fell on the arrow in Inuyasha's hand. Inuyasha was completely dumbstruck. _Could Kagome really do this to one of her closest friends? Was she capable of putting Miki in this state? _

Kaede took the arrow out of Inuyasha's hand and scrutinized it closely. Sango gasped at the arrow head that was covered in blood. One glance at it told Miroku to take the twins home. This was not the place for them right now. Kouga anxiously glanced at Kaede; he was close to tears. Kaede exhaled through her nose. "Kouga, bring Miki to my hut. I'll see what I can do."

Kouga slowly followed her, glancing down at Miki's face. He sighed and picked up his pace. Sango turned to Inuyasha. He was still in utter shock. "Inuyasha, aren't you bothered by this?"

He looked up with huge golden eyes. "I was bothered when my own daughter was attacked, Sango. This woman wants something. She wants it so badly, she doesn't care who gets in the way."

"I don't think that Miki got in the way," said Sango slowly.

He gaped at her. "Sango, people don't go attacking other people for no apparent reason."

"I'm not saying she didn't have a reason. I'm just saying that maybe this is a sign."

"A sign? What the hell are you talking about?"

Sango sighed. "Honestly, Inuyasha. Don't you ever think? It's a sign of the lengths that this woman is willing to go to. It's a sign that we better do what she wants, or next time, it'll be for real."

"So severely injuring Miki was the way to do that?"

Sango tapped her chin and began to pace around. "Makes sense to me. She was all alone. Her guard was down. Hell, if I was the woman, I would've relished that moment. A moment where my prey was defenseless."

"It makes sense…But Kouga thinks that 'the woman' is Kagome."

* * *

Kaede pushed the flap of fabric aside and moved aside so Kouga could get in. He crouched down and gently lay Miki on the mat on the floor. He rose and uncomfortably stood in the far corner of the hut. Kaede knelt down and gently rolled Miki on her stomach and began surveying the wounds on her back. Just seeing the blood made Kouga wince again. Kaede turned around at the soft noise. "Kouga, it is not easy seeing ye mate like this, but keep a strong face. For ye son."

Kouga stood stock-still. He had completely forgotten about Mamoru. Oh god…What was he going to tell him?

Kaede's fingers busied themselves, working at the spots where the blood was the darkest. She carefully tore a bit of Miki's clothes so she could better examine the wound. She fingered it slightly. "It's not very deep. Miki should be just fine."

Kouga broke out in fresh tears. He sank to his knees and buried his face in his hands. "Oh thank god."

Kaede stood up. "That is not to say that it can't get worse. I suggest ye get some herbs-oh never mind…" she said walking out of the hut. "No sense in pushing the poor boy," she muttered.

Kouga crawled over to Miki's side and caressed her cheek. He looked straight ahead, not able to look at her. His jaw began to tremble. _This is all my fault. If I hadn't gone and been a dumbass, none of this would've happened. And Mamoru…What am I supposed to tell him? I can't just tell him that his mother was attacked!_

The entrance flipped open again. He was expecting Kaede. Not expecting Inuyasha. He faced away from him, tossing his black hair over his shoulder in the process. Inuyasha sighed and sat on Miki's other side.

"How is she?" he whispered.

"She'll be fine. But it was all thanks to Kagome that she's like this," he said bluntly, still facing the wall.

_Damn this bastard..._Inuyasha was getting furious now. He jumped up. "Kagome has been dead for five years, jackass! Why are you so sure that it's Kagome?"

"The arrow, Inuyasha!" shouted Kouga. "Do you know any archers around here with sacred arrows? DO YOU?"

Inuyasha fell silent. He didn't know what to say. Luckily, Kaede chose that moment to return with a heaping basket of herbs. She noticed Inuyasha, but said nothing of it. She busied herself with Miki's wounds. She tore more of the fabric away from the blood so she could get the herbs to do their magic. Inuyasha was horrified. _No wonder Kouga's so upset. She's got two wounds and while they're not deep, the woman must've hit a vein or something to make Miki bleed like that. _

The blood flow was beginning to lessen and Kaede dabbed a rag at one of the holes, trying to clean it up. After applying more herbs, she gingerly bandaged Miki's back. Kouga was relieved in seeing that Miki's wounds were treated. Inuyasha sighed in relief as well. "Will she be OK?" asked Inuyasha.

"As long as she doesn't strain herself," she said, pointedly staring at Kouga.

Kouga was offended. "D'you think I overwork her?"

Kaede shook her head, sighing. "Calm down, Kouga…Both ye and Inuyasha have matching tempers."

"WHAT WAS THAT?" they both yelled.

Kaede chose to ignore them and answered Kouga's other question. "I did not say that ye overwork her. Being the mate of the leader of the Eastern Wolf tribe must not be easy on her at times."

Kouga's face fell. "No," he admitted. "It hasn't. The wolves...They reckon I should've married Ayame. Even the Elder Wolves. They think that Miki's opinion doesn't matter because she's not very well known among wolves." With every word, Kouga's voice shook. He wasn't even aware that he was talking about his mate's struggles with the tribe in front of Inuyasha.

Inuyasha was listening silently. He felt a pang of guilt with every sentence Kouga finished. Kouga was so worried about Miki…and all Inuyasha did was call him names.

Kouga clenched his fists. "It does matter, dammit. She is their leader just as much as I am. I-I-" He couldn't speak another word. He carefully scooped Miki in his arms, bowed slightly toward Kaede and nodded at Inuyasha before slowly taking off toward his den.

Kaede rose and sighed when she saw the look on Inuyasha's face. "The woman affected Kouga more than you think, Inuyasha. Not only was his mate hurt, but now I think that he is confident that this may happen again," she said, looking him straight in the eyes. "Only next time, it could very well be fatal."

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**And the end to another chapter. This didn't end on much of a dramatic note unlike the past two chapters. Read and review. Flame if you want. Constructive criticism is always welcome. Be as brutally honest as you want to be. Hope you all are doing well!**


	7. Flickering Candle

**Thanks to pilalohax, KiraraGoesMeow and xXxAddicted2ChocolatexXx for reviewing the last chapter! You guys are amazing! **

**Disclaimer: It's pretty damn obvious that I don't own Inuyasha. **

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Chapter seven:

Inuyasha was holding Karin's hand tightly. He was taking her to the modern time for her visit with Mrs. Higurashi and Souta. His ears twitched every now and then. He would often stop and glare at the bushes before walking again. It took them so much longer to get to the Bone Eater's well, but it was worth it. If Karin got attacked again, Inuyasha would never forgive himself. He turned to his daughter. "You ready?"

She nodded happily. "Let's go, Daddy!"

He smiled at her happiness. He hoisted her up in his arms and jumped into the well with her. Nostalgia began to wash over him. He felt his eyes begin to mist. He remembered going down the well with Kagome. Sometimes, he'd go alone to visit her without her suspecting it. Seeing her eyes light up when she caught sight of him made Inuyasha relish the life he had before the fire.

Suddenly, Karin tugged on her father's haori. "Daddy, we're here." She saw the look on his face. He looked like he was about to cry. Lately he'd looked like that a lot. Karin didn't understand why he was so weepy these days. She never saw him cry, so whatever was troubling him was pretty serious.

Inuyasha nodded and jumped out of the well. He looked around and sighed. _The Higurashi shrine. Five years and nothing has changed. _He took Karin's hand and walked her to the Higurashi's front door. Karin bounded down the path and up to her grandmother's house. She pounded on the door.

Yuzuki Higurashi opened the door and smiled at her only granddaughter. She scooped her up in her arms. "Karin! What a lovely surprise seeing you. My my, you've grown since the last time!"

Karin giggled in Yuzuki's arms. "Obaa-san! Where's Oji-san?"

Yuzuki looked thoughtful. She loved seeing Karin and Souta play together and Souta absolutely adored Karin. He couldn't wait for her visits. "Oji-san's still at school." She put on a smile for her. "But he should be here soon." Yuzuki looked up and saw Inuyasha standing in the door frame. "What's wrong, Inuyasha?" She knew that Kagome's death was hard on everyone. Especially for Inuyasha. She didn't blame him in the slightest for her death. She knew that Kagome wanted her daughter saved and if he could, he would've tried to save both of them.

Inuyasha's eyes were tired and sad. "Things have…happened in the Feudal Era."

Her eyebrows knit together. "What kind of things?"

* * *

"A woman with a sacred arrow?" asked Yuzuki. "But, Kagome was the only one with the sacred arrows. Are you sure?"

Inuyasha watched Karin play with Buyo. She was happily running around after him. "Kaede examined the arrow. It's definitely got a miko's power."

Yuzuki clasped her hands together. _Things are a lot harder for him than I thought. _"What exactly happened?"

He sighed. _How do you tell your mother-in-law that her granddaughter was the first person that was attacked by this woman. _"Karin was coming home from playing with Misaki, Harumi and Mamoru. She heard a noise and naturally, she stopped." Inuyasha paused waiting for Yuzuki to respond. Her eyes told him to go on. "She said she saw an arrow fly past her. Her cheek was slightly cut by the arrow." He closed his eyes when he saw Yuzuki's hand fly up to her mouth. When she didn't say anything, he continued. "The woman aimed directly at Karin with her second arrow, but she missed. The woman hit the Goshinboku," he told his claws.

"The Goshinboku? That's where-"

"Kagome and I met," he said grimly. "That's why I'm suspecting-"

"You think that she somehow got resurrected?" she asked. "Like Kikyo did?"

"I'm not sure. But Karin wasn't the only one who got attacked. You know Kouga's mate?"

She looked puzzled. "Miki? What does Miki have to do with this?" Her eyes grew wide. "Miki wasn't attacked was she?"

He nodded sadly. "Kouga made her angry. He accidentally made it seem like he loved Kagome. She tore off into the forest when she was shot with two arrows."

Her mouth was a round 'O.' "She's OK, isn't she? Oh, Mamoru!" she cried.

"She's fine, but I don't know what would've happened if Kouga hadn't found her when he did. I think she would've bled out if Kouga hadn't taken her straight to Kaede."

They both sat in silence for a couple minutes. Finally the sound of the front door opening broke the silence. A tall, brown haired guy walked into the living room. His eyes lit up. "Inuyasha! Karin! You're here!"

Inuyasha turned around and saw his brother-in-law, Souta. "Hey Souta."

Karin ran into Souta's arms. "Oji-san! How was your day?"

Souta laughed. "It was just made better, by my favourite niece." His face fell when he didn't get a reaction from Inuyasha. He would've expected something along the lines of, "Keh, she's your only niece!" Then again, Inuyasha looked different today. He looked tired and worried about something. Then he saw the look on his mother's face. Her eyebrows were knit together and her lips were pursed. He put Karin down and sat down across from Inuyasha and Yuzuki. "What's wrong? You all look like something terrible happened."

* * *

It took about ten minutes for Inuyasha to recount the entire ordeal to Souta. Souta had listened quietly. When Inuyasha was done, Souta had a look of utter shock and disbelief on his face. "Someone is going around with sacred arrows and attacking the people Kagome was close to? Wasn't Kagome the only one with sacred arrows?"

"Not quite," Inuyasha said slowly. "All mikos have sacred arrows, but none of them have arrows with such strong cores. Kaede said she could sense a miko's power within the arrow and it was pretty strong."

Souta looked at his feet. "Is...is it Kagome?" he asked. As soon as he asked it, he regretted it. It was such a childish thing to ask. And in front of his mother and the man who loved his sister dearly. He looked ashamed and quickly got up, blushing. "I'm sorry. I'll be going now. Lots of work to do."

He raced toward the stairs when he heard Inuyasha's slow, deep voice. "It's OK to want her to still be alive." Souta turned around. _His eyes looked so much like Kagome's_ thought Inuyasha. He was aware his eyes were misting again, but he didn't care. He was surrounded by the people who cared about Kagome just as much as he did.

Souta saw a tear drop onto the hardwood floor. Inuyasha was looking at the ground now. Yuzuki sat by Inuyasha and embraced him like he was her own son. She stroked his hair and whispered a few words before succumbing to tears herself. Souta tore his eyes from his mother and his brother-in-law and gazed at his niece. She was still playing with Buyo.

Losing Kagome...it really affected them. She was the light of their lives. Now that light was gone and they were drowning in darkness. But not complete darkness. There was a bit of light. In the form of a flickering candle. Inuyasha's story of the woman was the source of the candle. It gave them the faintest hope that Kagome hadn't died in the fire.

* * *

**Another sad chapter. I have got to stop doing this...but writing sad and dramatic stories are my thing! haha, oh well. Read and review! Flame if you want. Constructive criticism is always welcome. **

**I have a poll up on my profile on which anime I should write my next fic for since some of them are nearing the end. So please vote on that. It would make things easier. I suck at picking things. **

**Anyone else distracted by the Euro 2012? I personally want Spain to win. Great. I prolly just started a fight. Just like when I said I hated Chelsea and Barcelona FC in the middle of History one day...**


	8. Gold Meets Chocolate

**And I'm finally back with an update! Not that it matters, you all will be so mad after this chapter. :D Thanks to misanthropichild, xXxAddicted2ChocolatexXx, iheartwinky and KiraraGoesMeow for reviewing the last chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha and I find it pretty tedious to have to repeat myself every damn time.**

* * *

Inuyasha was climbing out of the well holding Karin tightly. He held on to her hand tightly as if he was afraid that she'd get lost. Karin toddled alongside Inuyasha. She'd enjoyed visiting her grandmother and her uncle. It was always an enjoyable time, even if they were rather weepy this time. She tugged on her father's red hakamas. He tore his gaze away from the trees and looked down at her.

_God, she looks so much like her mother. Even when she was a demon._ She still had Inuyasha's silvery hair and golden eyes, but the twinkle in them, it reminded him of Kagome. Everything about Karin reminded him of Kagome. From her voice to the way she held herself. He blinked back a couple tears before giving her his full attention.

"Daddy, why is everyone so sad?" she asked. "You, obaa-san, oji-san," she counted off. She looked up expectantly at him.

He stopped for a minute. She was only five years old. She didn't understand the blow that Kagome's death had caused. They were able to keep in before, but now with the appearance of the woman with the sacred arrows, Kagome's memory was thrust into their lives. He knelt down and took her hands.

"Karin, you remember the lady with the arrows. Right?" When she nodded, he took a deep breath. "That lady...has power that no one else has."

"No one?" she asked with wide eyes.

"Except for Mommy. Mommy was the only one with that much power," he said with a quivering voice. "Everyone's just sad that Mommy's not here. And this lady with the arrows is reminding us of her." He was well aware of the tears that were creeping down his cheeks. This was a regular routine. He'd think of Kagome, cry for a while and then pull himself together for Karin.

She hugged him. "Don't cry, Daddy," she said. "Mommy was always happy when she was alive. Uncle Kouga said so! She was the happiest person he knew."

He smiled halfheartedly. Kagome did have the uncanny ability to smile even when things were shady. It was just the way she was. She was a happy person. He reached down and took Karin's hand. "Let's go home," he whispered. "You must be tired. You played with Buyo and Oji-san all day today."

"I'm not…tired," she said in between a yawn. She almost cried because of her yawn. She laughed when he raised his eyebrow.

"You're not tired?" he asked. "Do people yawn when they're not tired?"

"Daddy," she said laughing.

He smiled. Karin was his only form of happiness now. He didn't know what he'd do if he'd lost her. His smile faltered at the very thought. _No, don't think about it, Inuyasha. Thinking about it won't do you any good._

He silently walked back to the hut. They were almost there when he heard something rustle behind him. "Karin?" he whispered.

She looked at him. "What's that noise?" she asked.

He picked her up and looked around. He carefully scanned their surroundings. Nope, no demons. He couldn't hear anything. He skeptically glanced at the group of trees in front of him. There was a peculiar smell coming from the trees. He concentrated on the scent. It smelled…familiar. For some reason, he thought of Kikyo. He shook his head. _Whoa. Where did that come from? Why does Kikyo come to mind?_

He was puzzled. Why would he think of Kikyo at a time like this? Did the scent remind him of Kikyo? And if so, why? He continued walking toward the hut when something moved beyond the trees. He stopped again and stared at the trees. "Must be the trick of the eye," he muttered.

_Crack._

There it was again! What the hell was going on? He put Karin down and stepped closer to the trees. Suddenly, he was able to see a dark figure, but only for a minute. That minute made his blood run cold. He was able to see a good part of the figure's face. The figure had chocolatey brown eyes and dark black hair. He was sure the figure's bangs hung just above her eyes. Wait, her? Why was he assuming the figure was female?

_Because you saw the twinkle in her eyes, _replied a small voice in the back of his head. That twinkle…It was the same twinkle he saw in Karin's eyes when he made ramen. Was it the same twinkle his deceased mate had? _No, it couldn't be. She wouldn't have disappeared so quickly, _he thought confidently. But he just could shake it off. So many questions were swirling around in his mind. He didn't understand it. This was the first time he'd seen the mysterious archer. He was assuming the woman was the mysterious archer. She seemed to fit the description that both Karin and Miki had given him.

"Daddy," whispered Karin. "I'm scared. What's happening?"

His shoulders slackened. He couldn't dwell on the subject any longer tonight. He had his daughter to take care of. He couldn't possibly leave her alone to pursue this woman. He scooped her up in his arms and ran as fast as he could to the hut. But all he could think about were the brown eyes he'd seen. They'd locked with his, even if it was for a brief minute. He was almost convinced that he'd seen them before. He was trying to suppress the suspicions that he'd had for Karin's sake. He suspected that the woman was Kagome, but how insensitive would that be? If he told Karin that her mother was alive after all these years only to find out that the woman wasn't Kagome? He didn't think HE'D be able to take the truth.

Upon arriving at their hut, he carefully laid Karin down in her bed and snuggled under the covers next to her. Karin had been able to fall asleep in an instant, but Inuyasha was wide awake. He lay on his back and stared at the ceiling.

_Who are you? And what do you want?_

The woman's scent reminded him of his former love, Kikyo, but her eyes...He was ninety nine percent sure that they were Kagome's eyes. He'd only seen them so many times before. He'd be able to recognise her chocolate brown eyes from a mile away.

Once he got past the whole, but-the-eyes dilemma, he sighed. There was no way Kagome could've survived that fire. The fire completely destroyed the hut. No one could've survived that fire. Not even Kikyo, who always had a habit of returning to life.

He rolled over on his side and closed his eyes. _Why do I feel this woman will be the death of me?_

* * *

***Hides from angry readers* I'm sorry! It'll be worth all of the suspense and mind tricks I'm writing! I promise. Everything will get resolved.**

**Well, read and review. Flames and constructive criticism are welcome. To all of my readers who live hin America, hope you all had a lovely Fourth of July! 'Til the next chapter...**

**~lovemondotrasho**


	9. A Bit Of Happiness

**Thanks for the death threats, guys. JK. I know I'm teasing you guys, and things are going to lighten up in this chapter. I promise. **

**Thanks to mtooox, xXxAddicted2ChocolatexXx, loveless an the living fantasy, iheartwinky, That person that nobody knows, Celsie7 and KiraraGoesMeow for reviewing the last chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha.**

* * *

Sunlight streamed into the room, waking Inuyasha up. He peered over and saw that Karin was still fast asleep. He smiled at the sight and kissed her cheek. He rose out of bed and started toward the kitchen. He looked around and felt nostalgia wash over him as he remembered life with Kagome.

He shook his head, heating up the water. He wasn't much of a chef, but he did what he could and it wasn't half bad. At least it didn't taste like crap. True, he often took the easy way out and made ramen most of the time, but it was pretty damn good. He waited for the water to boil, savouring the quiet morning. He'd have these kind of mornings with Kagome back when they were newly mated.

He'd sneak out of bed without her noticing and try to cook breakfast for her. He smiled at the first breakfast(not ramen) he tried to cook. Kagome had stared at the charred lumps on the plate. He'd blushed about ten shades of red when she laughed. She kissed his nose and made a non-charred breakfast.

Thinking about her didn't make him tear up today. He was actually able to keep doing what he was doing. He poured the boiling water into the cups and went to go check on Karin. She was still sleeping soundly. He knelt down to her and gently shook her.

"Karin, sweetie. Wake up," he whispered. It took a couple shakes, but she eventually opened one eye. He leaned down and kissed her forehead. "Morning, baby. I made Ramen for breakfast."

He smiled at the sheer happiness on her face. She bolted out of bed and ran to go get washed up. He chuckled to himself, remember how he would react when Kagome made Ramen for him. Then his face fell when he'd remembered what'd happened the night before.

He was so sure that those brown eyes belonged to Kagome and no one else. So why did he sense Kikyo's presence? He covered his eyes and sat down at the table. Everything would've made perfect sense if Kagome had simply gone missing instead of met her untimely death in a fire five years ago.

"What kind of Ramen?"

Inuyasha was snapped out of his thoughts. Karin was sitting across from him. She leaned forward and pulled the small cup closer to her and peered into it. "Roast chicken! My favourite!" she shouted happily.

He watched her gobble it up, wishing that he could forget what'd happened last night just as easily as his daughter did. He shook his head violently when the thought had crossed his mind.

_I would never want to forget that. Kagome is out there. I'm confident. The arrow is solid proof of it. She was a much more powerful miko than Kikyo anyway. The arrow has to belong to her! _

He picked at his ramen, not having much of an appetite. Feeling restless, he covered the ramen, intending to eat it later. He waited for Karin to finish her breakfast. "Hey Karin, d'you wanna go play with Misaki, Harumi, Shippo and Mamoru?"

Her eyes lit up as she dashed out of the hut. He sat there shaking his head, laughing. "I'll never find out where she gets so much energy…" He rose to his feet and tore out of the hut. Karin was pretty fast when she was excited. He saw her slow down in front of Sango and Miroku's hut.

She toddled in and smiled at the houshi and the taijiya. "Hi Uncle Miroku! Hi Auntie Sango!"

Sango looked very pale and tired. Miroku looked equally tired, but they both managed smiles at their goddaughter. "Hello Karin," they both chorused.

"KARIN!" shouted two voices.

Misaki and Harumi bounded over to her with Kirara hot on their heels. They started giggling and shouting excitedly before running out of the hut to go play.

"Hey, be careful!" shouted Inuyasha over his shoulder. "Kirara, keep an eye on them, kay?"

Kirara slowly nodded before quickening her pace to keep up with the three girls. Inuyasha shook his head. "Kids and their energy," he muttered. He noticed Sango hunched over on the table and Miroku rubbing her back. "What's up with you two?"

Sango looked up and softly smiled. "Hey Inuyasha. Upset stomach." She braced herself as another wave of nausea hit her. She raced out of the room as if a demon was chasing her.

Miroku sighed at the sight. He hated seeing Sango so sick and he couldn't even do a single thing about it. Inuyasha raised his eyebrow. "So Sango's sick? Miroku, I'm not an expert on women and their crazy sicknesses and shit, but I think the last time this happened was when she was pregnant with Misaki and Harumi."

Miroku gaped at him. He didn't think that he heard Inuyasha correctly. When Sango stumbled back to them, he was still standing there with his mouth agape. She waved a hand in front of his face. "Miroku? Roku?" She turned to Inuyasha. "What's wrong with him?"

He crossed his arms smiling. "Because there might be a chance that Misaki and Harumi are going to have another sibling."

It took Sango a minute to take it all in. Being pregnant? Again? This was way too good to believe! She had to sit down for a minute.

Inuyasha laughed at the look of shock on both of their faces. "Ohh…But seriously. Sango, this could be that sickness thing that you, Miki and Kagome had when you were pregnant."

"Are you absolutely sure?" asked Miroku hoarsely.

He grinned at them. "Fortunately, there's a simple test." He knelt down by Sango's abdomen and pressed his ear against it. It was very faint, but it was there. It sounded like a constant drum beat. He pulled away, in sheer happiness for the couple.

"Congratulations!" he shouted beaming at them. He didn't think he'd seen anything happier in his life. Sango and Miroku were in tears, hugging each other. Seeing them so happy made him happier than he had been in a long ass time. He quietly walked out of their hut, giving them a moment.

He stared off into the distance. He could see Misaki, Harumi and Karin riding on Kirara. He could just make out a spinning top with a baby trying to touch it before it _poofed_ away. He smiled to himself. Children made everything better. He stared up at the sky.

_Kagome, if you're there…I just wanted to say thanks. For giving me Karin. Karin is possibly the best thing that has ever happened to me. _

His gaze returned to the children. He was happy that they had each other plus another on the way. He glanced over his shoulder and smiled to himself. Miroku was trying to talk to Sango's stomach. Tears were streaming down both their faces. He remembered the day that Kagome had told him.

* * *

Kagome had been sitting on the edge of her bed. She looked like she was about to take her hardest exam yet. Instead she bit her lip and clutched a small and slender stick in her hand. She looked around nervously for Inuyasha. He was out exorcising demons with Miroku. She lay a hand on her stomach and lightly rubbed it, not believing that there was a part of her and Inuyasha growing slowly.

She jumped up when she heard footsteps. Inuyasha looked pretty tired, but he tried to play it off when he saw Kagome. He wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her cheek.

"Hey Kagome," he whispered.

She gazed into his golden eyes. They held so much love and compassion. She wondered why she was so worried in the first place. His eyes fell on the stick in her hand. He pulled it out of her hand and stared at it. He flipped it over, not understanding what it was.

"Kagome, what the hell is this? And why does it have a little pink plus?"

She stifled a laugh, but was unsuccessful. He glared at her, wondering what he'd said to make her laugh at him. When she saw the look on his face, she tried gaining her calm composure.

"Inuyasha, that's a pregnancy test from my era," she explained. Her eyes were shining brightly now. "And there's a little pink plus on it because you're going to be a father."

Inuyasha sank in the bed, still clutching the stick. _Kagome? Pregnant? With my pup? _Suddenly a huge smile graced his face. His eyes held a mix of shock and happiness. "W-We're having a pup?" he whispered.

He leapt up and kissed her when she nodded happily. Nothing could ruin this moment. He and Kagome were having a pup!

* * *

He softly smiled at the grass, remembering that day. Before he was so scared to let nostalgia wash over him, but it was nice. He never regretted mating Kagome. That day when she found him pinned to the Goshinboku was the best day of his life, even if he didn't act like it all the time. He leaned against the entrance of Sango and Miroku's hut, feeling glad that Kagome had come into his life. If this woman wasn't Kagome, then at least he had his memories of life with her to fall back on.

* * *

**And there we go. A little happiness in this tangled web of suspense. A little baby for Miroku and Sango. I'm such a sucker for babies. *sigh* **

**Read and review! Constructive criticism is always welcome. **

**~lovemondotrasho**


	10. The Hurt In Her Eyes

**I feel like I haven't updated in a long ass time. *sigh* Well, at least it wasn't that long this time! Thanks to CityOfFallenAshes, iheartwinky, xXxAddicted2ChocolatexXx, loveless an the living fantasy and KiraraGoesMeow for reviewing the last chapter! And sorry for the lack of ramen in this chapter, xXxAddicted2ChocolatexXx! I'll try to make it up to you at the end with an author's note. :D**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha.**

* * *

Miki gathered a small bag of things for Mamoru before standing at the opening of the den. She turned around and saw Kouga wrestling with Mamoru. She sighed. "C'mon Kouga, we promised to go visit Miroku and Sango!" she called over her shoulder.

Kouga waved his hand and finally caught Mamoru. Mamoru was laughing at his father's exasperation. Kouga gave his son a small smile despite his worries.

The wolves had been pretty unruly lately and they rarely listened when Miki took charge. Just the thought of it pissed Kouga off. It'd been the same deal for about five years now. Why the hell couldn't they listen to her? But that was nothing new.

On top of his frustration at the wolves, Miki had almost completely shut him out of her life. The aftermath of the arrow was starting to upset him. Not only did he almost lose her, now she was ignoring him most of the time.

Kouga had gotten Mamoru in his arms. He held him in his left arm and took Miki's hand with his free one. Together, they took off toward the village. Mamoru giggled the entire way there. He loved it when his father ran with him. He liked feeling the wind blow through his hair. Slowly, they came to a stop in front of Sango and Miroku's hut. They were about to walk inside when Kirara darted out with Karin close behind.

"Hi Uncle Kouga. Hi Auntie Miki," she said politely before chasing Kirara again.

Mamoru started to squirm in Kouga's arms. He laughed, having understood his hint. Kouga set Mamoru down and grinned at his round face. "Mamoru, stay with Kirara. OK?"

"OK, Daddy," he said happily. He ran after Kirara and started playing with her and Karin.

Kouga and Miki stepped in Sango and Miroku's hut, immediately greeted by Misaki and Harumi. The twin girls were jumping up and down, singing, "New baby! New baby! New baby!" before running out to join Kirara, Karin and Mamoru. The couple laughed softly before finally meeting Inuyasha, Miroku and Sango.

Miki threw her arms around Sango and squeezed her tightly. "Third child," she whispered. "You must be so proud!" She backed away from Sango and beamed at Miroku who worriedly glanced at her and then at Kouga.

"Miki, you sure you're fine?" asked Miroku. "You got hit with two sacred arrows not too long ago."

She softly smiled at the ground. "I'm fine, Miroku. There's no need to worry about me. Just worry about how you're going to react when your child is born."

Both Inuyasha and Miroku raised an eyebrow at Kouga who guiltily looked away. Ever since she was hit with the arrows, she refused to talk about the incident and it was apparent to everyone. How could they not notice? When she was around, she spent less time smiling with Kouga and more time with Mamoru snuggled in her arms. It was rare seeing her without Mamoru.

Kouga turned back to Sango with a nervous smile. "So Misaki and Harumi are excited?"

Sango also noticed the awkward silence. "Yeah. They're so happy that they get a new brother or sister."

The silence afterward was unbearable. Inuyasha cleared his throat rather loudly, making everyone shudder.

"Sorry. Miki, can I talk to you for a second?"

She looked surprised, but she slowly nodded. Kouga glanced at his mate before silently pleading to Inuyasha. Inuyasha curtly nodded, taking Miki to the front of Sango and Miroku's hut.

He didn't even say a word when she sighed. "Inuyasha, I know why you brought me out here. You want me to talk about what happened."

_Damn her knack for guessing what was on people's minds. _He nervously scratched the back of his head, staring off into the distance. "Well-"

She crossed her arms and glared at him. "I don't want to talk about it, Inuyasha. And before you argue with me and say that talking about it will make me feel better, don't. If I don't want to talk about this with Kouga, then why would I talk about it with you?"

His eyes narrowed at her words. She spoke with such venom. Why? Why was she acting like this? "Listen, I know Kouga can speak without thinking sometimes, but-"

She let out a mirthless laugh. "Please. Kouga knows what he's saying and honestly, I don't give a shit about it. I know that he never got over Kagome-"

"And that's where you're wrong!" he shouted.

She looked taken aback. He didn't mean to yell at her, but she lacked so much self esteem where Kouga was concerned. She would put herself down until she was level with the ground. He took a deep breath. "Miki, demon matings are forever. You know that. Why would Kouga mate you if he wasn't sure he loved you? And you say that he doesn't care? Think back, has he tried to talk to you since it happened? What were his first words when he saw your eyes open?"

She opened her mouth and then closed it, dumbfounded. He sighed in relief. She was finally thinking now. He saw her face fall. "I…I always assumed. That he didn't get over her." She looked up with watery eyes. "The fact that he was able to pinpoint her scent after all these years…How am I supposed to overlook that, Inuyasha?"

He cringed at the tears and hurt that had gathered in her eyes. He looked down at the grass before he lost it. "You don't overlook it. You move on from it. Forgive and forget. That's what a relationship is all about. I'm not proud to admit it, but I did the same thing when I was younger. I would unintentionally lead Kagome on and then I'd end up breaking her heart because I was blinded by my love for Kikyo."

She wiped her eyes. "I guess Kouga and I can talk things over tonight," she said shakily.

He ruffled her hair, earning him a look of annoyance. "That's the way to go."

She yanked his hand off her hair and pushed him aside. "You know I hate it when you do that."

He beat her to the entrance. Just before walking in, he looked over his shoulder and smirked at her. "I know."

She shook her head before walking in, but before doing so, she also looked over her shoulder and squinted at the faint figures that were playing with a large cat demon. She smiled before stepping in.

Kouga anxiously looked up at Inuyasha. Inuyasha waved his hand as he sat down across from Miroku. "You are so lucky I became softer when I got mated."

Kouga glared at the hanyou. "I tried, mutt. I tried to talk to her. She just shut me out of her life."

The two demons glared daggers at each other. Sango and Miroku tiredly glanced at each other. They shook their heads with slight smiles on their faces. Back to the days when Inuyasha and Kouga couldn't go two seconds without fighting.

Miki walked into the room and the first thing that caught her eye was the intense staredown and Miroku and Sango's amused faces. She looked questioningly at them, but they shrugged. She tentatively sat down next to Sango, smiling at the expecting parents. "So, have you thought of names?"

They shook their heads. "Not yet," answered Sango. "We're still letting it sink in." She smiled fondly at her midsection. Miroku lay a hand on her stomach where the baby might kick someday.

It was just then that Kouga noticed that Miki had come back. He caught her eye and she gave him a small smile. 'We'll talk about it tonight,' she mouthed at him.

His eyes softened and he nodded back. Inuyasha sat back in his seat, feeling a little proud of what he had done. He might've helped Kouga and Miki reconcile. He closed his eyes and smirked. _And Kagome thought that I couldn't do a single nice thing for_ Kouga.

* * *

**And then Inuyasha whipped out a cup of ramen from the pocket of his hakamas. Kouga glanced at the cup questioningly. **

**"Don't judge, bastard," spat Inuyasha. "It's fucking delicious." He glanced down at the cup and sighed. "I suppose xXxAddicted2ChocolatexXx can have this. Cuz she doesn't have any at home." He grudgingly gave the cup to xXxAddicted2ChocolatexXx. "Hope you enjoy it," he mumbled. **

**Haha. Hope that was a nice compensation! **

**Don't forget to read and review! Constructive criticism is always welcome. **


	11. Hope

**Thanks to loveless an the living fantasy, xXxAddicted2ChocolatexXx, I love snowy owls, iheartwinky, That person nobody knows, KiraraGoesMeow and Anya Primrose for reviewing the last chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha, just the OCs. **

* * *

They had chat lightly of other subjects for the rest of the day. The sinking sun caught Inuyasha's eye. He stood up, giving Miroku, Sango, Kouga and Miki a small smile.

"I think it's best if Karin and I go now," he said. "Who knows what we might find on our way home today?" he joked lightly.

Miki and Sango's heart ached for him. He had gone so long without his mate. And with a daughter, no less. He tried to put a brave face on all these years, but with this woman's appearance, he was starting to crack.

Miki and Kouga got up, joining Inuyasha. "We'd better head home too," said Kouga gruffly. "It's a long way back to the den and its way past Mamoru's bedtime."

Miki took his hand and squeezed it gently. The feeling made Kouga feel complete. For the first time since she had gotten attacked, he let a genuine smile appear on his face. He squeezed her hand back before tearing out of the hut.

"That was a great thing you did, Inuyasha," said Miroku with a small smile.

Inuyasha leaned on against the door frame. "Eh. Kagome would've done the same."

He was able to say Kagome's name without tears forcing their way into his eyes, but it still hurt him. It hurt him to relive all his happy memories with her. He felt a reassuring hand on his arm. He jumped slightly, not expecting Sango to comfort him. She also had a small smile on her face.

"You've been so strong, Inuyasha," she whispered. "For Karin. The fact that she's running around so happily with Misaki and Harumi proves that you've grown since we met you."

He looked down, trying to keep it together. When he realised that he would most likely lose it in front of them, he turned around and started walking out of the hut. "Karin and I should get home now."

Sango pulled her hand back, biting her lip. She thought she had said the wrong thing when she felt Miroku's hand on her shoulder. She looked up at his violet eyes.

"You didn't say the wrong thing, San," he said softly. He stared off into the distance. He could faintly see a small figure that was holding an even smaller figure's hand. "The pain of losing Kagome is a lot for Inuyasha to handle. He feels that her death is his fault. And on top of all that, there's a woman going around with sacred arrows hurting the people who are close to him."

He turned back to Sango and brushed a stray strand of hair out of her face before wrapping his arms around her. She shocked at first, but she soon found herself returning the hug. She felt his fingers combing her hair.

"I can't imagine what Inuyasha is going through and I don't want to," he whispered into her hair. "Promise me you'll be careful, Sango."

He pulled away to look her in the eyes. Indigo locked with chocolate. "Promise me," he whispered.

She felt herself melt into his arms. She buried her face into his chest before nodding. "I'll be careful," she murmured.

* * *

It had gotten dark. Inuyasha was mentally kicking himself for leaving Sango and Miroku's hut so late. He was holding Karin's hand as tight as she could. A few minutes later, he felt a tiny hand on his. It was trying to pry his hand off. He looked down.

"Daddy," she hissed. "You're hurting me."

"Sorry," he said, loosening up on his grip. "I'm worried, Karin," he confessed.

"Worried about the lady?" she asked.

He nodded before remembering that it was too dark for her to see. "Yeah." They walked in silence for a couple of minutes. It was still a while before they would reach the hut. He focused his hearing. Nothing was rustling in the trees today. It was absolutely silent.

Suddenly Karin tore her hand out of Inuyasha's. He turned around, about to lose it when he saw Karin's face. Her mouth was a thin line. Her eyebrows were furrowed and she was looking down. He crouched down so that they were eye level.

"What's wrong-" started Inuyasha.

She shushed him before he could finish. He fell silent, wondering what was taking all of her concentration and focus. She looked up after a couple of minutes. "I hear something," she said quietly.

"What?" He focused his hearing. He concentrated on his surroundings. His ears twitched. His eyes swiveled over to Karin, who was anxiously looking up at him. He had heard it. It was faint, but he heard it. It was a soft padding on the ground. Someone was making their way toward them.

He didn't even wait for her to ask if he heard it. He scooped her up and ran as fast as he could back to the hut. Once they made it to the hut, he carefully set her down in her futon. He contemplated going outside to see exactly what was making all of that noise outside.

"Karin, hold still," he said softly. "I'm just going outside to see what made that noise."

She slowly nodded. It pained him to see the fear that was in her eyes. Her eyes were huge and innocent looking. He tore his eyes away from her and tentatively took a step out. He trained his hearing on his surroundings again. His eyes raked his surroundings. He crouched down, ready to attack.

Nothing.

He straightened up and scratched the back of his head. He cocked his head to the right, confused. He turned around, yawning.

_Crack._

He whipped around, claws out. He gripped the hilt of his Tetsusaiga. He carefully pulled it out, holding it in front of him. He carefully looked around. Nothing was around him. Why was he feeling so uneasy? Why did he feel like someone was watching him?

He slowly lowered it, still cautious of his surroundings. He raised an eyebrow at the silence. It was almost taunting him.

_Dimwit,_ it seemed to say. _You can't find who or what you're looking for. _

He bared his teeth. His blood was starting to boil. Just exactly what was out here?

Something shifted in the distance. It didn't go past him. He bounded over by the trees where he saw the shift. He stopped a few feet away, just in case. His golden eyes pierced the shadows. What he saw made his blood run cold. His mind went numb. The sword slipped out of his hand and fell into the grass with a soft thud.

A woman was standing among the trees. He could barely make out her chocolate iris and her shaggy black bangs. She was wearing traditional miko attire. She had arrows slung over her shoulder.

He dared to take a step forward. He slowly reached out before withdrawing his hand. He stared at the woman before him, holding his breath.

"K-Kagome?" he asked hoarsely.

A light appeared in her eyes, making them dazzle. He could see a faint smile on her lips before she disappeared. He gaped at the now empty spot before him. He waved his hand in the air where the woman was standing. Nothing was there. He looked around wildly, trying to decide if he had just been reunited with his dead wife.

* * *

"Hey!" shouted Miki.

She was standing in front of a group of rather rowdy wolf youkai. She held a hand to her temple, aggravated. She had stood there for the better part of two hours, trying to call order. She sighed before looking over her shoulder.

"Kouga just had to leave now…" she said trailing off.

She turned around, closing her eyes. She was fed up with how everyone treated her. It pissed her off. The constant rude behaviour toward her. It wasn't like she personally did anything to offend them.

"What's wrong, Sis?"

She turned around and sighed in relief. "Ginta, Hakkaku. It's so nice to see you," she said. Her eyes fell on the demonesses next to them. "Yuki, Emiko, how are you?"

Shortly after Kouga had gotten mated to Miki, Ginta and Hakkaku had found mates of their own. Ginta's mate, Yuki, was a soft-spoken and sandy-haired youkai with warm amber eyes. Yuki was like the timid and shy sister that Miki always wanted. Emiko, however, was a youkai with icy blue eyes and long brown hair. Emiko was rough on the edges, but her heart was in the right place. She'd do anything for her loved ones.

The four youkai glanced at the crowd in front of her. "Trouble relaying news?" they guessed.

She looked down, ashamed. She was a horrible co-leader. She couldn't even relay news to her tribe. Honestly, what could she do right?

Yuki strode forward. She stood by Miki's side and peered at the crowd in front of her. They were all chattering away, not caring about anything or anyone. She turned back to Miki. Her amber eyes flooded with worry. "How long have they not been listening to you?"

"Much too long," she sighed. She squared her shoulders and faced the crowd again. "HEY!"

There was not a single youkai that turned around to give their leader their attention. She groaned, turning to the youkai behind her. She rubbed her neck. "That's it. I am killing Kouga when he comes back with Mamoru."

Emiko glared at the rambunctious crowd. "Hold on," she muttered. Hakkaku nervously gulped at the blue fire he saw in her eyes. Whatever she was going to do wouldn't end well for anyone.

She stood right in front of the crowd, still glaring. "OI! SHUT IT!"

Everyone fell silent, wondering which youkai had signed up to die early. Miki was standing next to Ginta and Hakkaku, feeling mortified. She felt a hand on her shoulder. She looked up at Hakkaku, who gave her a small smile.

"Don't worry about it, Sis," he assured. "Emi's just…loud. Her voice cuts through the noise."

Emiko had come back, looking rather satisfied. "I seriously question the youkai in our tribe." She closed her eyes and shook her head. "To show that much disrespect to their own tribe leader…It's disgusting."

"Thanks, Emi," said Miki. She stood before the group and took a deep breath. "As you all know, there have been sightings of a woman with sacred arrows. It is believed that the deceased miko, Higurashi Kagome, has somehow resurfaced. All of you are being warned. This miko may attack you for no reason at all. You all are advised not travel alone or past nightfall."

She could faintly hear someone in the crowd say something about the attacks.

"Didn't Miki get attacked?"

"Mmhmm. She almost died."

"We would've been better off..."

She felt weak-kneed at the comments. She tried to ignore them and continue on, but she didn't have the heart to.

"She has been sighted near the village," she added softly before retreating to the den.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Ginta and Hakkaku give the crowd a murderous glare.

She hopped up to the furs and sank in them. She wasn't one to cry. No, she was stronger than that. But it still hurt her to know that her own tribe wouldn't care if she had died. They actually wanted her to die. They only listened to Kouga. She turned on her side, closing her eyes.

"Kouga, I'm going to murder you for leaving me alone with the tribe."

"C'mon, Princess. You wouldn't kill me, would you?"

Her eyes snapped open. Kouga was standing before her, smiling. Mamoru was in his arms, squirming. She stood up and took Mamoru from him, bouncing him on her hip.

"What's this about killing me?" he asked lightly. "I thought we settled our differences."

"You know damn well why I'm angry," she snapped turning around. She rubbed Mamoru's back before setting him down. She turned around and glared at Kouga.

"Your tribe doesn't give a damn what I say." She took care to put extra emphasis on 'your.' "In fact," she continued. "They, quote, would prefer that my life get snuffed by the arrows."

He narrowed his eyes at the noise outside of the den. His blood boiled at her words. He grabbed her wrist and dragged her outside. "Dammit," he muttered. "This is really pissing me off."

He stopped in front of the crowd. It was immediately silenced before he even said a word. He glared at the youkai, his hand still on Miki's wrist. It annoyed him. All of it. How the tribe disrespected her. How could they do that to their own leader?

"Can someone repeat what Miki just said?" he asked.

No one responded. They all looked at one another, knowing that they were in for another rage filled lecture.

Kouga was absolutely furious. He rubbed his temple in annoyance. "Listen, Miki is your leader too. She's at the same level as me. I don't understand why you all don't give her the same respect you give me."

Everyone was silent. The atmosphere changed. The tension was thick. You could cut it with a knife. Miki took a few steps back.

"It looks like you got your point across, Kouga," she said softly.

He glanced at her retreating figure. He turned back to the youkai. "You all are dismissed," he sighed. He made his way back to the den.

Miki was rocking Mamoru to sleep. She looked up when he began impatiently tapping his foot.

"What the hell was that?" he demanded.

"It's no use," she sighed. "You're just wasting your breath."

He took Mamoru out of her hands and lay him down to sleep. He roughly pulled her up. He gripped both of her shoulders tightly, shocking her.

"You can't let people walk over you," he said angrily. "You have to stop putting yourself in this state of mind. You have to believe in yourself."

She looked away, biting her lip. "It's not that easy, Kouga. You've had it easy your entire life. You've been their leader for years. How long have I been their leader? What nobility do I have?"

She pulled away when she felt his grip loosen up. She turned so that her back was to him. He wanted to say something to make her feel better, but she walked away before he had a chance to.

He placed his hand on his forehead and glanced at his son's sleeping form.

"Why don't they have a single ounce of respect for your mother? Or better yet, why does she let them treat her this way?"

* * *

**Read and review! Constructive criticism is always welcome. **

**Next Monday, I'll be going to Canada for a week-long trip. Which means...no updates. :( I'll be sure to update as soon as I get home. **


	12. A Plan

**It's been such a long time since I updated...man...I'm such a bad updater. Well, hope you guys are still reading this, cuz it's about to get a lot more interesting from here. :D **

**Thanks to iheartwinky, CityOfFallenAshes, Anya Primrose, xXxAddicted2ChocolatexXx, oldie disk224 and loveless an the living fantasy for reviewing the last chapter! **

**A special thanks to xXxAddicted2ChocolatexXx, who successfully made me laugh like an idiot in front of all of my aunts and uncles. But Miki is isn't bold enough to, quote, shank someone. She'd shank someone for Mamoru and Kouga. But no one else. **

**Hope you all enjoy the chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha. Just my OCs. **

* * *

"Inuyasha, ye need to calm down," said Kaede.

The widowed hanyou had paced around the room and thinking nonstop for the better part of two weeks. Karin was at Sango and Miroku's hut, playing with Misaki, Harumi and Kirara. Inuyasha ignored the priestess' words and rubbed his chin, his amber orbs focused on the ground. He'd look up every so often or his fluffy ears would twitch, prompting him to brandish his sword

_I'm sure it's Kagome. It has to be her. But now there are three questions. How did she survive? Why is she shooting arrows at our loved ones? Why am I picking up Kikyo's scent?_

He was jerked from his thoughts when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He whirled around, whipping his Tetsusaiga out and baring his fangs. He felt foolish when he realised he was directing his sword at Kaede. He sheepishly lowered his sword under her stern gaze. He slipped it back into its sheath and nonchalantly looked around the hut.

"Inuyasha," she said gently. "Remind me of what happened. Ye said ye saw a woman."

He angrily shook his head, making his silver tresses flip wildly. "I saw Kagome!" he exclaimed.

She chose not to pay attention to his tone and focus on what she had in her mind. "Ye cannot be sure," she said slowly. "Kagome perished in the fire five years ago-"

"I saw Kagome!" he repeated angrily.

She sighed, backing away from him. It wasn't that she was angry with him. She was far from angry with him. If anything, her heart broke for him. He had lived without his mate for so long. His senses were surely dulled by now. On top of all the grief that came out of losing Kagome to the fire, he was raising a pup on his own. There were many things that he couldn't do and there weren't very many people he could lean on. It was a good thing the well still worked. His in-laws were literally one of the few people he could count on. He had never been on good terms with his brother. She remembered the last time they were together. They were at each other's throats. Poor Rin had to play peacemaker for the umpteenth time.

"I am not trying to be hard on ye," she finally said.

Upon hearing what she had to say and the tone she used, he regretted snapping at her. He was just so frustrated with everything that was going on. Was he seeing his mate? He couldn't wrap his mind around the concept of her simply wandering around, physically hurting people. And if she was wandering around, why didn't she come back to him?

"I am only looking at things realistically," said Kaede.

It was silent after that. He didn't know what to say or what to do. Fortunately, she kept going.

"We need…to devise a plan."

He raised an eyebrow at her words. His golden eyes narrowed and he crossed his arms. He let out a breath he wasn't holding. "What kind of plan?"

* * *

"Lady Kaede wants you to see if the archer is Kagome by doing what?" asked Miroku.

Inuyasha had met up with Sango and Miroku after Kaede told him of her plan. They were sitting around the table with a bowl of berries. Karin, Misaki, Harumi and Kirara were still playing outside.

Inuyasha scooped out a handful of berries and rolled them around in his hand. He loved the textural feel of the small, cool and bumpy berries against his palm. He picked up a particularly ripe blackberry and popped it in his mouth. He hadn't been paying much attention to what Miroku had said. He was still thinking about Kaede's plan. Would it really work? Would he possibly get his mate back?

"Inuyashaaaaaaa," called Sango waving a hand in front of his eyes. He shook his head, blinking a couple of times. Miroku and Sango were sitting in front of him wearing equally worried expressions on their faces. He gave them a reassuring smile before playing with the cuff of his robe of the Fire Rat.

"Yes. Kaede wants me to see if this woman has Kagome's mating mark," he confessed.

It sounded even more outlandish the second time. They gaped at him, hoping that he was kidding. They looked at each other before turning to Inuyasha again.

"Kagome's mating mark?" asked Miroku weakly. "It's on her shoulder, isn't it?"

"Yeah," said Inuyasha. He fell silent, knowing that Miroku and Sango would begin to ask questions and doubt the plan. He was beginning to doubt the plan himself. He did not, however, expect Sango to give his hand a reassuring squeeze. He looked up, startled.

She offered a small smile. "It sounds difficult, but we know you can do this. You haven't let us down before."

Even with her words, he just couldn't pluck up the strength to even consider the plan. His tired golden eyes stared off into the distance. "San, thanks, but it's close to impossible. I can't even get within two feet of this woman. How the hell am I supposed to see her mating mark?"

"You managed to keep your inner demon in check for five years," Miroku pointed out. "It's been on the verge of coming out, but it never did."

Inuyasha was about to contradict him when Sango spoke up.

"You managed to collect all the sacred jewel shards and defeat many demons, including Naraku."

"And on top of all that, you still manage to start a shouting match with Kouga which usually results in you holding Tetsusaiga to his throat and Miki attempting to pull you off of him," added Miroku.

All of their praising felt nice to hear. Inuyasha hadn't felt like he had done anything right since Kagome had died. Everything around him reminded him of his failures.

He avoided their eyes for a minute. For the first time since the fire, Miroku and Sango had seen the troubles and the aged look in his eyes. Kagome's death was very hard on him and it showed with the extra ten to fifteen years older he looked.

Inuyasha had been thinking about Kagome for the longest time. Suddenly, his thoughts swiveled over to Karin. He could picture her carefree face so clearly in his mind. He knew that life without Kagome was just as hard on her, if not a little more. She had grown so big without knowing what a mother's love was like. She was growing up just as he did.

He clenched his fists before giving Miroku and Sango a piercing golden stare. "Tonight," he said quietly. "Tonight I'll find out if the archer is Kagome."

* * *

**Oooh. Mating mark. What do you guys think will happen in the next chapter? O.O (I have it about...75% written, so it should be up relatively soon. If I don't have another panic attack this week. Damn schoolwork...) **

**Read and review! Constructive criticism is always welcome. **


	13. Tricks of the Night?

**Wow. This was a relatively fast update for me. Thanks to Anya Primrose, loveless an the living fantasy, SerenePanic, oldie disk224 and CherryCreek55 for reviewing the last chapter! **

**Hope you all enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I solemnly swear that I do not own any part of this story, save the plot and OCs. **

* * *

Everyone was stationed in different places. Sango and Miki were in the hut with the children. Kouga, Miroku, Inuyasha and Kirara were outside. Inuyasha was in the same spot where he last saw the archer. Miroku was standing among the trees and Kouga was keeping watch from high up in the tree branches. Kirara stood by the entrances of the hut in her "harmless" kitten form, guarding the people inside the hut. She paced back and forth, restless. Her blood-red eyes scanned the area around her as if she had heard something. She lowly turned to face the direction she was walking and resumed her pacing.

"Inuyasha," whispered Miroku from behind the trees. "Are you sure you want to do this tonight?"

The said dog demon kept his golden eyes focused in the trees. His mind was alert and his right hand was hovering over his sheath, preparing himself for a possible attack.

"I should have done this a long time ago," he muttered.

Kouga glanced down from the trees. He knew he butt heads with Inuyasha every other day, but he really did feel for him. He didn't know what Inuyasha was feeling now. Was he feeling anxious and apprehensive? Or ecstatic and nervous? Whatever it was, he didn't want to feel it any time soon.

He glanced at the hut. He felt something tug at his heart. He thought of Miki and how her life had hung in the balance at the hands of the archer. He felt something go ablaze in the pit of his stomach, but it quickly mellowed out. His anger was replaced by confusion. If the archer was Kagome, why were Karin and Miki her targets? None of it made sense to the youkai.

Miroku nervously played with the beads and cloth that covered his right palm. The curse that Naraku had placed on his grandfather so many years ago had been lifted when the Shikon Jewel was destroyed, but after so many years of covering his palm, leaving it uncovered felt unnatural and odd to him. He kept thinking about the attacks on both Karin and Miki. Karin had narrowly dodged the arrow, but Miki hadn't been so lucky. It really shook him to see so much of her blood that day. His thoughts on the attacks faded away and thoughts of Sango entered his mind. If Sango was attacked tonight, something terrible would happen to her and their unborn child.

Miroku gripped the bead a little tighter after thinking of the possibility of an attack on Sango. After a while, he stopped playing with the bead altogether and held his staff. He scanned the area before him before glancing at Inuyasha. The look on his face…it was so determined and impassive. He knew that Inuyasha was dead set on proving whether the archer was Kagome.

Inuyasha's concentration was beginning to waver. He was never one for patience. He could feel his hand moving away from his sheath. He mentally slapped himself and grabbed his sword for the sake of keeping himself focused.

_'Where are you, Kagome?'_

* * *

Karin, Misaki and Harumi were quietly playing in the corner with a box of crayons that Souta had given Karin on her last visit. Mamoru was being rocked to sleep. Miki bounced him on her hip, glancing at the entrance of the hut. She could see Kouga perched on a tree branch. As soon as she caught a glimpse of his crystal blue eyes, she quickly turned away and continued to rock Mamoru to sleep. She rubbed her hand on his back when his head lolled to the side. She craned her neck and checked to see if Mamoru had fallen asleep yet. She gently lowered him down to the pillow. When his head touched the pillow, he curled up into a cat-like ball. She sat beside him and watched him sleep for a couple of minutes.

She jumped when she felt a hand on her shoulder. Her hand darted to her back, as if she had been struck there. She sheepishly dropped her hand, realising it was only Sango.

"Sorry, Sango," she said quietly. "I guess I'm just a little jumpy tonight," she confessed.

Sango sat down beside Mamoru and Miki. Miki avoided her eyes, but Sango didn't say anything of it.

"It's OK to feel nervous," she said. "It's OK to be scared. You were attacked by the archer not too long ago."

Miki supposed that this was part of the reason, but it wasn't the entire reason she was jumpy. She sat indian-style and grabbed both of her ankles before rocking back and forth.

"I guess I can't help but feel that something will go wrong tonight," she whispered. "Someone will get hurt tonight. I'm not sure if it will be physically or emotionally, but someone will get hurt."

She glanced across the room. Her eyes fell on the three girls struggling to keep their eyes open as they were drawing and colouring. She turned to her ankles and sighed.

"Sango, what will happen if the archer isn't Kagome? What if it's someone completely different. Someone who is a new threat?"

Sango had listened quietly to the younger youkai's words. When it came down to her last questions, she honestly didn't have an answer. She had been wondering some of the same things. As much as she disliked the idea of Kagome hurting her own daughter and best friend, she couldn't help but want the archer to be Kagome. For both Karin and Inuyasha. They had thought that the archer was Kagome for so long. They had so many raised hopes. To find out that she wasn't Kagome, it wouldn't just break their hearts, it would destroy them. Living with a false hope…it would send Inuyasha spiraling into a depression. One that he couldn't recover from.

After thinking about every possibility that could come out of tonight, Sango wasn't sure how to answer her question.

"Have faith," she finally said quietly. "Have faith for Inuyasha and Karin."

* * *

Inuyasha was standing in front of a small cluster of trees. His golden orbs were gazing intently at the area. His hand was still hovering over his sword. Every so often, his fingers would touch it and he could feel a pang of guilt and wince at his internal pain.

Kagome was with him when he had received this sword from his father's tomb. She had unintentionally pulled the sword out of the stone. Sesshomaru had been battling him for it. The Tetsusaiga…Sesshomaru had received the Tenseiga, the sword that healed, from their father. Sesshomaru had always said that he never liked the Tenseiga and fought with Inuyasha to the death for the Tetsusaiga, but Inuyasha knew that Sesshomaru was secretly happy that the Tenseiga had been able to revive Rin.

Kagome had always been there for him. Even when his ulterior motive wasn't always for the best. She had been with him when Naraku's detachment, Goshinki, had broken it. SHe had been there when the sword was too heavy for him to lift. She was there for it all, but she wasn't here now when he needed him the most. Tonight, he'd find out who the archer was once and for all. He'd finally find out of Kagome had truly perished in the fire five years ago.

Both Miroku and Kouga noticed Inuyasha spacing out. They gave each other a look that said, 'Tonight isn't going to end well.' Miroku nodded at Kouga, signaling that he'd try to talk to Inuyasha. The blue-eyed youkai nodded back, resuming his aerial watch from the tree branches.

The houshi carefully stepped toward Inuyasha. He tried not to make a sound, in fear os scaring the archer away, but Inuyasha's highly developed ears had caught on to the soft padding of Miroku's feet against the grass.

Inuyasha didn't think of the noise belonging to Miroku, though. The first thought that popped into his head was Kagome. He whipped his sword out of its sheath and found himself holding it to Miroku's throat. Miroku hadn't flinched. He merely held his staff tighter and held his left hand up, in mock surrender. Inuyasha wordlessly lowered his sword and stared at the area in front of him. He could feel Miroku's eyes on him. Truthfully, he felt uncomfortable. He'd been jumpy ever since he had supposedly seen Kagome. He knew someone would call him out on it, but that didn't mean he was going to like it.

"Inuyasha?" asked Miroku tentatively. "Are you sure you want to do this tonight?"

"I'm fine," snapped Inuyasha. "And I'm doing this TONIGHT. I should have done this a long time ago."

Inuyasha jerked his head toward the area he was monitoring. A thin branch was bouncing up and down when he turned back. He blinked, thinking it was a trick of the night. He heard Miroku tense up as well as Kouga shift in the trees. This was not a trick.

Was it Kagome or not?

* * *

**Mind tricks...bwahahahaha. :D This chapter was supposed to be longer, but I felt that this was a nice cutoff point and would earn me a couple death threats. I kinda miss those. Anyway, the next chapter has been written in my paper notebook and it should be up soon. Unless I get swamped with work again. Seriously. I fell asleep on the bus for five minutes yesterday and now I'm suddenly branded a freak. Well I'm sorry I spent the night studying. -_-**

**Read and review! Constructive criticism is always welcome.**


	14. Burnt Jasmines

**Aha. I'm so sorry for updating a week later than I promised. Not only did I lose my flashdrive that had ALL of my fics and whatnot, but I've been having problems with controlling my anxiety. I'm working on not losing it while balancing everything I have to do, but it's proving to be a problem. **

**Anywho, thanks to loveless an the living fantasy, CityOfFallenAshes, iheartwinky, SerenePanic, xXxAddicted2ChocolatexXx, Anya Primrose, oldie disk224 and atmemoiret for reviewing the last chapter! **

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, so please don't sue me. That wouldn't really help with my anxiety problems. **

* * *

Inuyasha carefully brought his sword out of it's sheath and held it out in front of him. He carefully inched toward the tree. He pushed the bushes aside. A peculiar scent was tickling his nose. Jasmines mingled with...ash? He straightened in shock. The smell of Jasmines reminded him of Kagome. The Jasmines definitely belonged to Kagome. But the ash...that was new. Why was Kagome's scent mingling with the smell of ash? He became rigid. He remembered the scent he was smelling now was similar to that of the archer's.

Miroku noticed Inuyasha's unease. He carefully padded toward Inuyasha, prompting Kouga to hop down and follow him.

"Do you think he actually found Kag-" started Kouga.

The scent of burning Jasmines had reached Kouga now. He furrowed his eyebrows, silently asking himself the same questions as Inuyasha.

Noticing the youkai's sudden focus, Miroku gripped his staff tighter than he already was. He looked around nervously; his indigo violet eyes carefully scanned the area around them. Nothing but stars and trees caught his eye. He turned back to Kouga.

"Can you smell Kagome?" he asked incredulously. "Is she nearby?"

Kouga squinted, trying to pinpoint where the scent was coming from. "It's either her or a damn good impersonation of her. I'm fairly positive the archer is Kagome..." He carefully stepped toward Inuyasha, his own hand hovering over the sword he seldom used.

Inuyasha's heart was beating harder than it had ever done in his life. His eyes fell on a foot print and a small piece of red cloth. He crouched down, bringing his nose down to the ground. He avoided touching the fabric, fearing his scent would mix with the scent of the fabric. The smell of Jasmines and ash was overwhelming now. The archer was definitely here.

He took a chance and reached out to pick up the fabric. His fingers were inches away from the fabric when the silence was suddenly broken.

"My name is...My name is...My name is..."

It sounded like a broken record, but the voice was unmistakable. It was a soft, high pitched musical voice. It was warm and timid, just like Kagome's voice. He was afraid he was going to cry. It had been so long since he last heard that voice. Upon hearing it, he didn't have any other doubts; Kagome had definitely come back to him.

His ears began twitching again, picking up another sound.

"My name is...My name is...My name is..."

The voice was progressively getting louder and angrier. He recognised it as the tone she had used the the day that they met.

"My name is Kagome. KA-GO-MEH!" she had shouted.

Inuyasha wildly looked around, searching for the owner of the voice. He knocked Miroku and Kouga down in his frenzied search for the voice. He looked on both sides, his silver tresses flipping wildly.

"KAGOME!" he shouted.

He saw a flash of inky black hair swoosh behind his hut. He dashed behind the hut, shoving his sword back in his sheath.

'Why are you running from me, Kagome?'

* * *

"I'm not...ahhhh...tired," said Karin, yawning.

She kept her eyes wide open, hoping it would fool Sango. Sango smiled, coming closer to her. She knelt down; her brown, almond shaped eyes were twinkling just as they always did. She gave Karin a warm smile.

"Karin, it's time for you to go to sleep," she said gently.

Karin shook her head, suddenly angry. "I want to stay awake! I want to see Mommy!" she cried. "Auntie Miki got to see her! Daddy got to see her! I want to see her too! Why isn't Mommy coming home?!"

It broke Sango's heart to see tears forming in her golden eyes. Honestly speaking, she didn't think Karin remembered Kagome. Karin was barely a year old when Kagome passed away. Then it hit her. Karin didn't remember Kagome. She didn't know what a mother's touch or a mother's love felt like. The day she was attacked by the archer, she didn't know what was going on. She didn't get a good look at her attacker, who could have been her mother.

Sango felt something tug at her heartstrings. She was a bit older than Misaki and Harumi when her mother was killed by a malaria outbreak. It was hard on her and Kohaku, who was only a year or two younger than Karin was now. Kohaku had also grown up, not knowing his own mother. Tears began forming in the taijiya's eyes. She reached out and held a sniffling Karin close to her. She ran her fingers through her waist-length silver hair.

"It's OK, Karin," she said softly. "Are you worried that Mommy is mad at you?"

She remembered the times when Kohaku would constantly beat himself up for not being able to remember their mother. It broke her heart each and every time he attacked himself for something he couldn't help. Was Karin doing the same thing?

She held Karin tighter when she felt her nodding. She softly stroked her hair, whispering into her ear. "It's OK that you don't remember her. Mommy isn't mad about that. Mommy's not mad at you."

Karin lifted her tear-stained face and clumsily wiped her pink eyes. She sniffed softly. "S-she's not?"

Sango gave her a warm smile, wiping her own eyes. "No, she's not. Now lets go to bed."

Karin nodded, slowly rising to her feet. She stumbled into her room, leaving Sango to wonder if Kagome really was out there, wandering around.

* * *

"Kagome!" Inuyasha shouted.

He looked around wildly, trying to see where she went. He cursed quietly before tearing off into the direction where the burnt Jasmines was the strongest. It was coming from behind the hut. He froze for a minute. He glanced up at the hut, remembering how it had burned down five years ago. He built the new hut right next to the old one, wanting to stay close to Kagome. He hesitantly took a step forward, making sure the scent hadn't trailed off.

It was still as strong as ever. He crept closer to the toward the back of the hut. He saw a mass of fabric hunched in front of the side of the hut. He stepped closer to the figure. The figure was shaking like mad. He was almost scared to approach it.

'It's Kagome,' he told himself over and over.

He took the sheath off of his waist and lay it down in the grass. The figure stopped shaking when the sword touched the grass. It froze, but it didn't see where the noise came from. Inuyasha continued to come closer. The smell of burnt Jasmines was overwhelming now. He coughed softly, but continued to walk. His heart was racing and his mind was going a million thoughts per second. He had begun shaking. He didn't know if he could bring himself to find out if Kagome had survived in the fire. He didn't think he could handle the pain of losing Kagome again.

The figure was close enough to touch. He extended his hand. He glanced down at his wobbly hand and focused his gaze on the figure. The figure remain unmoving. It still faced the side of the hut. He took a deep breath, attempting to calm his racing heart.

'In and out...now or never...'

He reached out and pulled his hand back, biting his lip. He mentally berated himself. He extended his hand again, squeezing his eyes shut. He pushed his hand forward until it stopped at a white, silk-like something. His eyes sprang open. He could barely breathe now.

"Kagome," he whispered.

At the sound of his voice, the figure turned around and looked him in the eyes. The figure, a woman, had brown eyes that were a rich chocolate brown. Her midnight black hair flowed freely down her shoulders, reaching her lower back. Her bangs were shaggy and they hung in front of her eyes. Her face was pale. Her cheeks didn't hold a rosy tint like most people's cheeks did.

She was breathing rather heavily before she spoke. "Inu...Yasha," she whispered.

Her voice was just as high pitched as he remembered. High pitched and musical. Three words he used to describe Kagome's voice. The sound of her voice was enough to make his heart skip a beat. He felt a warm and tingly feeling in the pit of his stomach. His golden eyes locked with her chocolate eyes. He saw a reflection of a fire in her eyes, making him want to pull away from her, however, he kept a firm grip on her shoulder. He lost her once. He sure as hell wasn't losing her again.

He gripped the fabric tightly in his right hand, but not tight enough to physically hurt her. He gently pushed the collar of her haori down, exposing her bare shoulder to the cold night air. He kept his eyes locked with hers. When he was sure he would be able to see her shoulder, he stopped pushing her sleeve down. He took a deep breath and looked down.

Her shoulder was almost clear. A faint marking was present on her shoulder. He squinted to see what the marking was.

The mark on her shoulder faintly showed his name in beautiful and complicated calligraphy. His name was the only marking that was visible on her shoulder. He stood frozen for a minute, unable to comprehend what this meant.

She raised her hand and placed it over his hand. The moment her fingers touched his skin, he felt a rush of power. First a tingle. Then a bit of warmth. It coursed through his body like adrenaline. It was as if he was able to better connect with the world around him. He felt a deep rumble from the centre of his chest. Almost like a dog growling in agreement. He felt the strength of his senses triple with just her touch.

**MATE. **

He was shocked for a minute. His inner demon hadn't come out since the fire. He quickly glanced up at the woman sitting before him. Could this be his mate? Did she survive the fire?

"Kagome," he whispered.

In the darkness, he was able to see her beautiful smile illuminate her faec. Once she smiled, he couldn't help but smile back. He was almost surprised by how easily the smile came to him. He hadn't willingly smiled in a long time. She began shaking again, but because she was laughing. Her tinkling laughter melted any ice that was still surrounding his heart. He found himself laughing along with her. Laughing to the point where he could barely breathe.

When their laughter finally died down, they stopped to catch their breath. While catching his breath, he snuck glances at her. Her eyes were twinkling now. They showed less of the fire he had seen before, but her cheeks remained pale. Before he had time to question why, she had tensed up, looking past him. He craned his neck to look over his shoulder. Footsteps were coming closer. He turned back to her, only to see that she had disappeared. He looked around wildly. She couldn't have gone that far, could she?

Kouga and Miroku emerged out of the darkness. They gave a panicking Inuyasha a bemused look.

"Inuyasha," started Miroku.

"What are you doing?" asked Kouga.

Inuyasha dashed past them, still looking around wildly. He raced around the hut, searching for the woman. He stopped in front of Kouga and Miroku. He was breathing heavily and his eyes were full of tears that threatened to spill out. He didn't think he could speak.

"Inuyasha what the hell is going on?" demanded Miroku.

Kouga shoved his fist in Miroku's shoulder, sensing the anxiety in the hanyou. "Look at his face," he hissed. "I think he saw Kagome!"

At Kouga's words, Inuyasha felt just enough strength to speak.

"I saw Kagome," he whispered. "And she was very much alive."

* * *

**I hope that makes up for the suspense filled cliffy that I left you guys with last time. If not, I'll try to get the next chapter up soon. Read and review! Constructive criticism is always welcome. I would appreciate if you guys did review. That would be a lovely birthday present. Er, late birthday present. My birthday was on Wednesday. :D **


	15. Unexpected Family Reunions

**Happy Columbus day weekend everyone. ...Well, people who live in America. I am back with another chapter of my winding plot. :D **

**Thanks to SerenePanic, xXxAddicted2ChocolatexXx, Anya Seneca Primrose, CityOfFallenAshes, iheartwinky and oldie disk224 for reviewing the last chapter! **

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of these characters. Except my OCs. Anything from this story that resembles anything in the real world, be it fictional or nonfictional, is purely coincidental. **

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It seemed Inuyasha was back to square one the next morning. He furiously paced around his hut, ignoring anyone who tried to break his concentration. Karin had fallen asleep shortly after her episode. So she didn't understand why Inuyasha was pacing around or why everyone was on edge. It was obvious from their frequent yawning and dark circles as eyes that no one had been able to sleep the night before. Misaki and Harumi were quietly playing among themselves, occasionally playing with Kirara. Mamoru was being fed breakfast by a worn-out Miki. She glanced over her shoulder every so often, as if she was being watched Sango was helping Miroku console a determined Inuyasha. Kouga had left the hut hours ago to check on the tribe. "I don't understand!" exclaimed Inuyasha. "How-why..." None of his questions made sense. Nor were they completed. Sango and Miroku sat him down and attempted to ease the tension in his mind. Karin turned to her father, wondering if he had finally lost his sanity the night before. She quietly detached herself from Misaki and Harumi and slowly made her way toward Miki. She waited until Mamoru had finished his breakfast to get the wolf youkai's attention.

"Ahhh…Karin? What's wrong?" asked Miki, yawning. She motioned at Mamoru to go play. She ran her fingers through her hair, brushing the inky black hair out of her eyes. Karin sat down in Mamoru's spot and waited for Miki's full attention.

Miki looked down at Karin and was confused to see a look of unease on her face. Karin's eyebrows were furrowed and her golden eyes were deep in though. It struck Miki as odd seeing a child thinking so intently.

Karin looked up. Her face was unreadable. "Why is Daddy so angry and upset? Did he see Mommy last night? Where is she?"

Miki's stomach dropped at the five-year old's tone. Her tone was full of light-heartedness and curiosity. She sounded like a child at Christmas. Miki almost expected Karin to start looking around the hut to see where Kagome was hiding. Memories of the night before flashed through her mind. Her heart broke at the scene Karin had created. She didn't have the heart to tell Karin that they didn't know where her mother was.

"Yes," said Miki finally. "Daddy saw Mommy last night. He was the only one who saw her. She left as soon as she heard other footsteps."

At that moment, Kouga stumbled through the entrance of the hut. His eyes looked sleep deprived and he had a hint of a five o'clock shadow. He slowly made his way to Miki and clumsily kissed her cheek. He patted her head before collapsing in the seat next to her. The blue-eyed youkai yawned before resting his head on her lap.

"Why am I the leader of the wolf demon tribe?" he asked softly.

She sighed before running her fingers through his hair. "I ask myself that question every day."

He turned on his side, curling up into a small ball. He gently rubbed her knee before closing his eyes. "Good night, Princess."

Karin had thought to herself all this time. She didn't notice Kouga had come in until she heard his quiet breathing. She stood up and slowly walked toward Miki and Kouga. She slowly reached out and softly poked Kouga's shoulder. His eyes snapped open and he looked around, searching for the source of his awakening.

"Hey Karin," he said in between yawns. "How are you?"

"Did you see Daddy meet Mommy?" she demanded.

Kouga bolted up at her words. He glanced at Karin and then Miki. He narrowed his eyes at Miki. "What did you tell her?"

Miki looked genuinely taken aback. "Me? Why does this have to be my fault?!"

He got up and began pacing around the room. He looked like he was on the verge of completely losing it. Miki glanced at Karin, silently telling her that they would talk about this later. When Karin nodded and bounded toward her corner with the other kids, Miki abandoned her place at the table and attempted to calm Kouga down.

"Kouga, calm down," she said softly. "I only told her that we didn't know where she went."

"BUT WE'RE NOT SURE IF THAT WAS EVEN KAGOME!" he roared.

She stayed silent and she yanked her arm back. She shrank back into her seat at the table. She stayed silent until she heard something bang against what suspiciously sounded like metal. She quickly turned around to see Inuyasha holding the Tetsusaiga to Kouga's arm. Kouga was able to hold it back, but only because of his Goraishi.

"The fuck was that for, Inuyasha?!" shouted Kouga.

Inuyasha pulled his sword back and redirected it at Kouga's nose. He pushed it closer to Kouga's skin. "Who the hell do you think you are?" he demanded. He pulled the Tetsusaiga away and pointed it at Miki, who shrank deeper into her seat. "That is your mate. DO NOT TAKE YOUR ANGER AT YOUR MATE."

His words rang into the silence of the hut. Sango and Miroku gently pulled Kouga away from Inuyasha. Sango stayed by Kouga and Miki. Miroku strode to Inuyasha and convinced him to sheath his sword. Inuyasha glanced at everyone before sheathing his sword. His eyes were tired and there were many creases on his forehead. He sighed before turning away from the group.

"Don't take her for granted," he said softly before walking out the entrance. He stopped before stepping out and turned to face the group again. "And I did see Kagome. That was our mating mark on her shoulder."

Everyone was still silent when Inuyasha left the hut. Kouga turned around and sighed when he saw Miki staring straight ahead emotionless. He crouched down beside her and took her small hands in his. She directed her emotionless eyes toward his.

"I'm so sorry, love…I'm not making sense of things."

She squeezed his hands, offering a small smile. "Don't worry about it. You are a lot crappier with less sleep."

He mentally thanked her for not holding grudges for very long. He rested his head on her lap again before slowly drifting off to sleep. "Good night…" he mumbled softly.

Miroku and Sango glanced worriedly at the door. They glanced at each other, both thinking of the same thing.

Inuyasha was speaking from the heart just then.

* * *

Inuyasha quickly walked away from the hut. After saying what he said to Kouga, he felt an adrenaline rush. His heart began pounding and he felt nauseous. He meant what he said. Kouga had no idea what it was like to lose a mate. No idea at all.

He stopped at the very front right side of his hut and stood still for a minute, staring at the sun. He let a breeze blow at him before turning around to go behind the hut. He found himself standing in front of the place where he and Kagome had met up the night before. He sat down and closed his eyes, replaying last night's events. Before he could even picture Kagome's face, he felt something tug at his heart. He suddenly got up and began running as fast as he could. He didn't know where he was going or why he started running. He just had to run.

Slowly, he felt the air whipping his hair in his face. Air was blowing around him. Then suddenly, everything was calm. He blinked a couple of times before looking around him. He was standing before a great tree. The Goshinboku. Tears stung his eyes as he reached out to brush his fingers over the bark.

"Return to the place where we first met," he said softly.

He pressed his forehead against the bark and willed his tears to not come. Everything was just so confusing to him now. What was going on? Why wasn't Kagome coming back to him? Why did she attack their daughter and their friend?

Suddenly, the air around him became cold and he heard a swish behind him. Without turning around, he knew what had happened. He slowly turned around and narrowed his eyes at the person standing behind him, completely disregarding the two people standing beside him.

"The hell are you doing here?" spat Inuyasha.

The daiyoukai glared at Inuyasha, venom present in his eyes. The person standing next to him, a woman, noticed the hostile behaviour between the demons. She lightly gripped the daiyoukai's arm, effectively calming him down.

"Sesshomaru," she said softly. "Remember why you're here."

Before Sesshomaru could react to what she had said, he found himself at sword point. He peered around the sword, his eyes resting on his younger half-brother.

Inuyasha stepped closer, pressing the tip of his sword to Sesshomaru's throat. He bared his teeth, clearly struggling with his inner demon. "Why the hell are you here?" he demanded. "Why now of all times?"

"Manners, half-breed," said Sesshomaru coolly.

Inuyasha's eyes flashed murderously. He quickly pulled his sword back, intending to run his older half-brother with it. The woman sensed Inuyasha's anger and immediately glared at Sesshomaru, who neatly dodged the attack. Inuyasha had narrowly missed the small green imp and the mystical horse demon, both of which were standing by their master and lord. The horse demon, Ah-Un, whinnied and moved away from the tip of the sword. The imp, Jaken, didn't move away so quietly.

"Filthy half-breed!" he shouted.

"Sesshomaru!" shouted the woman. "We did not come here to insult our brother!"

Inuyasha sighed, sheathing his sword. "Hey Rin. How are you? Being the Lady of the Western Lands and this bastard's mate must be pretty hard on you."

Rin pursed her lips, closing her eyes at the word 'bastard.' "I'm fine, but you're not. How're you feeling?"

"Gee Rin, How am I supposed to feel after seeing my mate who's supposedly been dead for five years?" he mocked. "I see her and then she ran away. My daughter has grown up without a mother. She has no idea who her mother is. How am I supposed to feel about that?"

Sesshomaru's eyes turned a murderous shade of amber. He gripped the hilt of his sword when he felt a small hand close around his wrist.

"He's confused is all," she said softly. "He's not intentionally saying this."

"You haven't answered my question," Inuyasha said stubbornly. "Not that I don't enjoy your company, Rin. It's more of his."

"Inuyasha, being the Lord and Lady of the Western Lands isn't all that…let's just say it doesn't allow for much free time," said Rin, clarifying his first question. "And we've wanted to talk to you about what's been going on for a while now," she added quickly.

The hanyou peered around his sister-in-law, glancing at his half-brother, who examined the blade of his sword as if he was thinking of the degree of pain it would cause someone. "We?" he asked with raised eyebrows.

She gave him a small smile. "Yes. We."

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**Ahaha. There's something for all of you Sesshomaru fangirls. Sesshomaru's presence in this story has very much to do with the plot. *grins* So I'd like to turn this into a game. Anyone who can correctly guess what his purpose is gets to hear the main storyline of my next Inuyasha fic!(Ahah, I have a very overactive imagination. I have a couple fics in line after this.) Read and review! Constructive criticism is always welcome!**


	16. Inner Turmoil

**So sorry for the amount of time it's taken me to update this story. I've been so swamped with work recently. This will most likely be the last update before midterms which are in a week and a half more me. I promise you guys that I will NOT abandon this story. Updates will be less frequent because now I'm in exam-mode. I just want you all to know: I started this story and I WILL finish it. **

**Thanks to CityOfFallenAshes, SerenePanic, Anya Seneca Primrose, oldie disk224, iheartwinky, xXAnimeChic101Xx and Jess for reviewing the last chapter! And a huge thanks to everyone for reading, alerting and favoriting!(yes, no 'u' after 'o' this time. You all can thank my bitchy biology teacher for that. Anyway, as I am getting used to spelling things the American way, I'm bound to miss things once in a while. *sigh* I'm working on it.)**

**Enjoy the chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything except for this plot and my OCs, who are not mentioned by name in this chapter.**

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Inuyasha looked at Rin in utter shock. She had just told him that they, Sesshomaru included, needed to talk about something important. He presumed it was something about the mysterious archer that appeared to him over the past couple of months, but he couldn't be sure. No one could ever be sure where Sesshomaru was concerned.

"I-Is this about Kagome? I swear, if you guys are playing some stupid prank-"

In a split second, Inuyasha found himself pinned against the Goshinboku. He felt a rush of emotions when the back of his robe of the Fire Rat touched the bark of the ancient tree. Nostalgia, fear and anxiety were the dominant forces. He saw flashes of his past. Both with and without Kagome. The memories consisted of the night he had woken up, pinned to the tree, and the day Kagome stated that she was happy to simply be with him.

Tears filled his golden eyes when the full force of the nostalgia hit him. He was completely unaware of the hand tightly grasping his throat, nor the panicked screams that tore from Rin's throat. In his mind, it was only him and Kagome.

_"Inuyasha, take Karin and go!" _

Those had been her last words. Her last words had been about her daughter. Their daughter. Their daughter who was growing up without a mother.

Rin raced toward Sesshomaru and attempted to pry him off of Inuyasha. Her small hands were fisted in the daiyoukai's robes as she screamed his name over and over in hysterics. "Sesshomaru! Let go of him!"

Sesshomaru held on to his younger half-brother's throat for a moment before releasing him and stepping away. He glanced at Rin, keeping his usual stone-cold look on his face. He hated his brother and he always would. He had even tried to kill him in the past, but he would never want Rin to use the tone she had just used.

Inuyasha slid down into the grass. His eyes were watery and full of pain. Rin noticed this right after Sesshomaru had let go of him. She quickly glanced over her shoulder and met his piercing golden eyes. She sighed before kneeling so she and Inuyasha were eye-level. She placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"Inuyasha," she said softly.

He didn't seem to hear her. Pure shock was present on his eyes, mingling with the previous emotions of anxiety and hurt. Rin gently shook Inuyasha. When she saw that it didn't have any effect, she turned to Sesshomaru, who hadn't moved since he let go of Inuyasha. She darted back toward him with a pained expression.

"Sesshomaru, what have you done to him?" she asked worriedly.

He didn't blink, nor did he change anything about his posture. He remained cold, a look of apathy present on his face. "I was defending my mate," he finally said.

Her eyebrows knit in confusion. "Defending your-"

"He spoke as if he was threatening you. Naturally I sought to eliminate the threat. This Sesshomaru will not stand by and watch you get hurt."

"You sought to eliminate the threat?" she asked weakly. She gazed into his eyes, almost asking for a real reason. "Sesshomaru! He's your brother!" she shouted.

"That half-breed is no brother of mine."

She clenched her teeth furiously and turned back to Inuyasha. His appearance hadn't changed either. He still remained in a state of shock. She shook him gently again, hoping to release him from his trance.

"Inuyasha, are you OK?" she whispered.

He was paralyzed. Memories were jumbled together. Kagome was walking toward him. A dazzling smile was on her face. Her eyes were shining brightly like they always did. She looked breathtaking in her traditional mating ceremony cream kimono. Suddenly, the surroundings blurred together. It looked as if an artist had taken every color of paint known to man and smeared it on a canvas. The image was soon replaced by blackness. There was not another sound until the next memory flitted into his mind.

There was a soft crackling. His heart plummeted when he recognized the sound.

"Kagome."

When her name rolled off of his lips, there she was, trapped under the wood.

"KAGOME!"

He had come back to reality. He blinked, his vision adjusting to the natural light.

Rin was sitting in front of him. Her big brown eyes were filled with worry.

"Inuyasha, are you alright?" she asked again.

He tore his eyes off of her and looked past her, his eyes falling on Sesshomaru. Sesshomaru narrowed his amber eyes at Inuyasha, turning around and tossing his silver tresses over his shoulder. Inuyasha turned back to Rin, not entirely confident he wanted to hear the words that would follow his question.

"So you wanted to tell me something?"

Rin glanced sideways at Sesshomaru, silently assessing how angry he was. Sesshomaru was always very protective of her. That was just how he was. Between having to visit Inuyasha and listening to his sarcastic remarks, she guessed that Sesshomaru was not in the best of moods. She slowly walked away from Inuyasha and toward Sesshomaru. He didn't acknowledge her presence, but she knew he was paying close attention. He was not one who let his attention stray.

"Sesshomaru," she whispered. "I need your help to explain this. There are parts of this that I am not even sure I understand."

The look on his face was cold and unfeeling. "I do not wish to speak to him. Not after how he spoke to you."

Rin sighed in relief. It wasn't the usual, "Inuyasha is a half-breed" problem. The problem was that Sesshomaru thought her safety was on the line. She took his hand and grasped it lightly, aware of the sudden shift in the daiyoukai's demeanor. "Sess, put yourself in Yash's shoes. He's been living without his mate for so long. Don't you feel the least bit sorry for him?"

Sesshomaru gazed into his mate's warm chocolate-brown eyes. They were probably the same thing Inuyasha looked for in Kagome. He slowly rose, his hand hovering over his sword.

"Inuyasha," he said slowly. "I'm warning you, you try anything that could put Rin's life in danger, I swear on our father that I will put you out of your misery."

Rin looked up in horror. She was about to say something when Inuyasha cleared his throat. "Why the hell would I put Rin's life in danger? She's the best sister-in-law ever. She's the one who keeps you out of my business."

Sesshomaru moved his hand away from his sword, but not too far away from it. "I don't fathom the minds of half-breeds."

Inuyasha ignored the insult and turned to Rin. "What is it that you guys wanted to ask me again?" He was growing restless. He knew that this was about Kagome and he wanted to know what it was. If it was something that he didn't already know, it could either make him or break him. If they knew Kagome was, in fact, dead and if they could prove it, he was sure he would quickly spiral into a depression. Not even Karin would be able to pull him out of this one, but if they had news that tied in with the archer he had seen last night - the archer he confirmed to himself was Kagome - he would regain a sense of security and happiness that he had lost that night five years ago.

"The archer, you said it was Kagome," Rin said cautiously. "Did she take on the appearance of an apparition?"

The question caught Inuyasha off guard. He didn't expect Rin to ask the first question. He heard Rin and Sesshomaru anxiously whisper among themselves and he was sure he heard Rin say that there were things that she didn't know how to explain, though he was happy that she had the tact to ask with sensitivity.

"It wasn't an apparition," he said quietly. "I know it was her. I saw our mating mark on her shoulder. It was faint but it was there!" With each sentence, his voice escalated. His voice was thick with passion and grief. He was close to tears by this point. He couldn't remember a time where he felt more vulnerable or more alone.

"Then it is as I suspected," Sesshomaru said lowly.

"As what was suspected?! What the hell is going on?!" demanded Inuyasha.

"Inuyasha, when Kagome died, did you find the body?"

Another question that caught Inuyasha off guard. '_Why would Sesshomaru ask a question like that. I'm sure Sesshomaru already knows the answer to that question. Unless…he isn't asking for his own knowledge. Sesshomaru must be asking the question to get the ball rolling in my mind! But why? What would that lead to?'_

"What? No. We didn't, and I always thought that was odd."

"Then there is a chance that Kagome is still alive."

Silence followed the daiyoukai's words. Thoughts were running loose in Inuyasha's mind, making him dizzy. _'Kagome? Still alive? The thought's only crossed my life ever since I couldn't find her body. But…this is crazy! If she was alive…she would return! I know she would!' _

"Kagome? he asked weakly. "She's alive? She might not have died?"

Confusion was quickly replaced with anger and loathing. He could feel his anger roaring in his eyes. His surroundings began to slip away. Nothing mattered to him anymore.

Rin looked stricken when she caught sight of the change in Inuyasha's behavior. His usually warm amber irises were beginning to disappear. Amber was replaced by a cold and bloody red. It looked as if there was a raging storm of emotions in his eyes. Lavender streaks appeared on Inuyasha's cheeks, indicating that his full demon was taking over. A hand flew to Rin's mouth and she whipped around to face her mate.

"Sesshomaru, do something!"

**"WHERE THE HELL WAS THIS FIVE YEARS AGO?!"** roared Inuyasha. **"WHY HAS IT TAKEN SO LONG FOR YOU TO TELL ME?!" **

"Sesshomaru!" shouted Rin, fearing for Inuyasha's safety.

"INUYASHA! Don't make me throw this at you!" shouted a loud feminine voice.

Rin quickly turned around and sighed in relief. Sango, along with Miroku, had ridden Kirara to the Goshinboku. Sango, even though she was just beginning to show a baby bump, had no problems handling her giant boomerang, Hiraikotsu. Miroku, however, was clearly not OK with Sango's arrangement. His hands were wrapped tightly around her waist and he looked as if he was about to faint. His indigo-violet eyes were transfixed on the large boomerang, wanting to tear it out of her hands.

"S-Sango? Please put that down. I-It's not good for the baby."

She rolled her eyes and scoffed, facing forward. "Miroku, you promised you wouldn't make a big deal like you did last time."

"You were pregnant with twins!" he shouted. "Honestly, woman. How did you expect me to react when you said you were going out to slay a demon when you were seven months pregnant?!"

Inuyasha could vaguely make out the outlining of Sango's Hiraikotsu. Sensing danger as well as a potential threat, he bared his fangs and kept his guard up. He tensed up and kept his claws out, ready to strike. As Kirara drew nearer, he began to lower his guard, having recognized Sango and Miroku. He straightened and dropped his hands to his sides. The lavender streaks on his cheeks began to disappear and his red iris was slowly reverting back to its usual warm amber. He was back to his half-demon form.

He blinked and looked around, dazed as Sango had Kirara gently and gracefully come to a stop. Miroku kept his hands firmly wrapped around Sango's waist, even after Kirara stopped.

"Miroku, you can let go now," Sango said with a slight smile on her face.

He looked hesitant for a minute. He slowly withdrew his hands from her waist and held them out. She looked at them, confused.

"Hiraikotsu," he said simply.

She shrugged before handing over her beloved boomerang. When she was sure Miroku had a firm grip on it, she let go and hopped off of Kirara. When Sango let go of Hiraikotsu, Miroku could barely hold it up. A string of curses flew from his mouth as he attempted to hoist it up.

"I will forever wonder how you pick this up," he stated.

Sango ignored him, drawing closer to Inuyasha, who had turned away from the group. She placed a hand on his shoulder just as Rin had done earlier. "Yash, what's wrong? Your demon hasn't come out in ages. What brought it out?" she asked curiously.

He felt hollow inside. His demon coming out and taking complete control of his body was just proof of how his inner turmoil was affecting him. It was taking a toll on his mental health as well as his emotional health and with Sesshomaru's new information, he wasn't sure what would happen next.

He took a deep breath and turned around, facing his friends and looking them in the eyes as he spoke. "Sesshomaru has just told me Kagome might not have died in the fire after all."

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**Inuyasha starting to feel mentally unstable now. Everything he has known about Kagome's death is now a lie? What do you all think of this new information? On a completely unrelated note, I feel like my writing style has changed from the last time this story was updated. I think that after reading William Shakespeare's Macbeth, I'm more prone to using illusions and emotions rather than sensory details to carry the plot out. Anywhoooo, read and review! Constructive criticism is always welcome. And a Happy belated New Year everyone! Time to get used to writing a three instead of a two! XD**


	17. Lost and Insecure

**I'm finally off of my mini hiatus! Midterms are done and over with and I couldn't be happier. I can finally move out of my textbook! xD But seriously. I have legit lived there since December. It'll be nice to not have to try to commit all of my textbooks to memory. **

**Thanks to SerenePanic, Anya Seneca Primrose, jellyfish'confetti, CityOfFallenAshes, xXAnimeChic101Xx and oldie disk 224 for reviewing the last chapter! And a huge thanks to everyone who has been reading, alerting and favoriting! Your support is greatly appreciated! **

**Enjoy the chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha. I do own Karin. **

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When the words rolled off of Inuyasha's lips, he felt a strange sense of giddiness and recklessness. He began chuckling silently to himself, shaking a little. He backed away from the group, bumping into the Goshinboku. A wide smile appeared on his face, startling everyone around him. They all watched in horror as the chuckling steadily grew louder. Rin tore her eyes away from a hunched over Inuyasha and glanced at Sesshomaru worriedly.

Sango took a tentative step forward, slowly reaching out to the silver-haired hanyou. "I-Inuyasha?" she asked cautiously. "Are you alright?" She pulled her hand back for a split second when she saw tears forming in his amber eyes as well as the grin on his face.

"Why wouldn't I be alright, San? Kagome's alive!" he whispered happily.

Sango took a step back in fear of what had happened to Inuyasha. Her hand flew up to her mouth to stifle a gasp. She glanced over her shoulder at Miroku. A mixture of shock and worry was etched on his face. His eyebrows were knitted together and his violet eyes were filled with sorrow. Sango made to ask Miroku for his advice on what she should do when Inuyasha spoke again, his words making a chill go down her spine and her blood run cold.

"Ya hear that, Mom? Kagome's still alive. She's a very nice girl. Even though I tease her a lot and call her a wench. I love her, Mom… Like how Dad loves you."

Sango whipped around, completely shocked at Inuyasha's words. "Shit! He's hallucinating!"

Inuyasha squinted past the group as if someone was standing behind them. His eyes widened. His eyebrows rose slightly and tilted his head to the right.

"Eh? Kikyo? You're here too? It's like a reunion or something. Look, Kikyo. I know we had something in the past and maybe I loved you at one point, but I love Kagome now. … I do want to thank you for saving San's kid brother, Kohaku. That's real nice of you. Oh. Byeeeeee Kikyo! Tell Kaede I said hi!" he began waving furiously at no one in particular.

Nearly everyone around him was paralyzed with shock. No one seemed to noticed Sesshomaru slowly draw closer to INuysha, pulling his Tenseiga out oh its sheath. He turned it upside down, so he was holding the blade and not the hilt. By the time everyone came to their senses and were aware of their surroundings, Sesshomaru was holding the blade over Inuyasha's head.

Rin's pupils dilated in horror. She failed to realize he was holding the sword by the blade and not the hilt. "Sesshomaru, what are you doing?!" she hissed.

He said nothing, his cold, amber eyes fixed on the top of Inuyasha's head. Without batting an eye, he brought the blade crashing down on Inuyasha's head. The said hanyou lurched forward from the impact of the blow. His eyes became wide for a split second before becoming dreamy and unfocused. They quickly fluttered shut and he slid down against the Goshinboku; he was rendered unconscious, his head lolling against the trunk.

Sesshomaru stepped away from Inuyasha and strode by to Rin, sliding his sword back into it's sheath. "He will have a raining headache, but he will no longer have hallucinations," he informed.

Again, no one was sure of what to say. The silence in the air was thick with nostalgia and woe as well as anxiety and panic. Was Inuyasha losing it? Was this just proof that he was close to the tipping point?

Sango glanced at Inuyasha's body, feeling tears prick her eyes. Inuyasha had always been more than just a good friend. He was like an adopted brother of hers. She had always admired his strength, courage and bravery. He had gone through such much pain and suffering since the fire. He couldn't just forget about life at that moment like anyone else would have. He had to keep going on with everything like nothing had hit him. He had to pretend that this wasn't the biggest blow of his life and that he hadn't lost a part of himself that night.

She could understand where he was coming from with his behavior. It was absurd to even consider that what Sesshomaru said was true, but at the same time it was the most logical conclusion that anyone had come up with. Kagome's body hadn't been recovered that night, something that unnerved everyone. Surely there would be some remnant of her in the ashes. Mikos usually left behind a symbol of themselves before they died, and no such thing was found when Kagome had been presumed dead.

Miroku was the first to come out of his trance. "Sesshomaru, how are you sure Kagome isn't dead? To say that she's alive is a very big thing to say…"

Rin turned to Sesshomaru, her childlike eyes and face holding wonder. "How do you know Sess? I don't recall you telling me that part."

Sesshomaru stared straight ahead, his face not holding any emotions. His eyes, however, seemed to soften at the sight of his mate. "Inuyasha would know if Kagome had died. His senses would have been dulled. Drastically dulled; he would not know right from left. A mate is the single most important thing to any demon. If that mate is gone from this world forever, then the demon cannot function the way it used to. The demon becomes a shell of its former self."

Rin stared at Sesshomaru with a newfound sense of admiration and love. She was just beginning to understand why he did the things he did. Things like try to fight anyone who looked at her strangely or give her a seemingly empty threat like Inuyasha had done earlier. The actions he took to make sure she was safe were second nature things to him. It was almost as if he was protecting himself by protecting her.

"If Kagome never died in the fire," asked Sango, interrupting the silence. "Then where is she? She can't have disappeared off the face of Earth. She has to be somewhere."

"And why can't Inuyasha find her? Surely, if his senses aren't as dull as if she had died, he'd be able to find her, right?"

"Inuyasha's senses have been dulled," contradicted the daiyoukai. "Not as dull as they would be had she died, but dull enough that he cannot track her. She has been away from him for so long that he cannot remember her scent. Demons, if separated from their mate for too long, begin to forget the scent of their mate. It is like memory. He would be able to find her if there was something to trigger the memory of the scent, but until yesterday there has not been such a thing."

Everything was starting to click to Sango and Miroku. They could barely contain their excitement and happiness. Their friend was still alive. She could be found. She could come back to them, her friends…her daughter…her mate. Inuyasha…He'd be whole again. He would be the same hot-tempered, ramen noodle-loving hanyou who had fallen in love with a miko who was lost in time.

"Sesshomaru?" asked Rin timidly. "What about Lady Kagome? She's been away from Inuyasha for a long time. Does she experience any changes like he does?"

"Normally a human, any human, who is mated to a demon, should have died by now. They would not have been able to handle being away from their mate. There is more to a mating ceremony than just being one unit. The demon and his or her mate literally become one at that moment. There is a part of the other that resides in their bodies. A demon and their mate rely on each other every day of their lives. If that mate is a human, the shock of being away from their mate would have been enough to kill them. Kagome, however, is an exceptionally powerful miko. She is able to prolong the side effect to being away from her mate."

Sango and Miroku gaped at the stoic daiyoukai as silence followed his words. Questions were swirling in the taijiya and the houshi's minds. Sango turned to Miroku, expecting him to say something on the matter. She did not, however, expect to see him stare at Sesshomaru with an unusual violet fire battling an indigo storm in his eyes.

"So you kept that bit of information to yourself?" demanded Miroku. "What? Are you still holding a grudge against Inuyasha because Inu no Taisho-sama gave him the Tetsusaiga and you, the Tenseiga?"

Sango gripped Miroku's wrist, yanking him back. Her eyes were wide with shock. Miroku never spoke up like that to anyone. He never spoke with such venom laced within his voice. She knew Kagome's "death" was hard on him; Kagome was like the kid sister he had never had. Sango understood his anger on the matter. What she didn't understand was how it seemed like Miroku wanted to start a fight with Sesshomaru.

Sesshomaru stayed cold and unmoving. "I do not regret my father's decision to give me the Tenseiga in the slightest," he said simply. "The Tenseiga gave me another chance with Rin, although I didn't see the full value at the time."

"Like hell you don't," whispered Miroku savagely.

Sango whipped him around so they were facing each other and so that they were eye-level. "What the hell do you think you're doing?" she hissed. "What are you going to get out of challenging someone like Sesshomaru?"

"It's not about challenging him, Sango, and you know it," he hissed back. "How can you listen to what he's saying and not feel anything? He speaks of Inuyasha like he's scum!"

As they had a hushed argument with each other, Sesshomaru's eyes narrowed at the houshi's words. He hadn't expected Miroku to speak so harshly. As a matter of fact, he hadn't expected Miroku to speak up at all. His usual stoic expression changed to venomous anger. "You dare challenge me, mortal?"

Miroku turned away from Sango, his hand flying to the beads that covered his palm. He almost yanked them off when he realized his wind tunnel had died with Naraku. He dropped his hand to his side, flushed with embarrassment. He, instead, faced Sesshomaru, his eyes looking as thunderous as he felt. "How could you keep something like this from your brother?!" he shouted. "Your own brother, Sesshomaru! She was his mate; your half-sister. Doesn't that mean anything?" When he realized his words weren't going anywhere, he decided to change his target. "Karin…your niece. Tell me, DOESN'T SHE MEAN ANYTHING TO YOU, BASTARD?"

At this point, Sesshomaru was seething anger. He did not like to be spoken to with such disregard. He made to make sure Miroku would never speak again. Suddenly, a flurry of black and orange flashed before his eyes. Everything became still again and he made to execute the attack when he stopped short, realizing what the black and orange movement was. His amber eyes displayed pure shock and bewilderment at the sight.

Rin had flung herself between Miroku and Sesshomaru. She had sensed his anger and the sudden change in his aura. Thinking on her toes, she did the only thing that would restrain him – shield Miroku with her body.

Sango flinched when she saw Sesshomaru move. She instantly made to grab her trusty Hiraikotsu. She was not one who wanted to be on the daiyoukai's bad side, but she sure as hell wasn't going to stand around while the said daiyoukai was making plans on ending the life of the father of her children. She was confused when she saw Rin standing before Miroku. Then she realized Rin's thought process and the intention behind her actions.

Sesshomaru would never think to harm Rin. If Rin shielded Miroku with her own body, then Sesshomaru would, no doubt, draw back.

Rin looked over her shoulder at Miroku and Sango. Her dark brown eyes were making silent pleas. "Miroku, please," she whispered. "Sesshomaru is already angry. Don't make things worse."

"Rin, stand aside," commanded Sesshomaru, his golden eyes fixed on Miroku.

Rin stayed rooted to the spot. "Sesshomaru, I know you have a reason. You do not hate, Karin. I know you. You would never want to do something like this intentionally."

"Karin is the spawn of blood-scum," he said flatly.

"Sesshomaru!" she gasped. "How dare you speak about your own niece like that?! You're choosing to despise her because of her parentage? Grow up, Sesshomaru!"

Miroku began moving toward Kirara, grunting as he attempted to pull Hiraikotsu on with him. "Save it, Rin. If he can look all of us in the eye and call Karin blood-scum, than I don't know what else to expect." He motioned at Sango to join him on Kirara.

Sango stared at Miroku for a moment before flicking her gaze over to Rin, who looked very disappointed in Sesshomaru. Her eyes returned to Miroku's. He furiously waved his hand, motioning for her to climb on Kirara. She hesitated, hoping Sesshomaru would say something. When he didn't, she sighed, making her way over to Kirara and Miroku.

Rin stepped closer to Sesshomaru, reaching out to him. She fisted the front of his robes in her small hands. He looked down at her, surprised to see tears forming at the corner of her chocolate iris.

"Sesshomaru, stop this nonsense!"she exclaimed. "I know you feel differently about Karin. I see it in your eyes when we see her. There's no ice in your heart when she's around. Her blood doesn't matter to you when she smiles at you and calls you 'Oji-san.'" She continued when he stared at her with absolutely no emotion. "Think of the pain she felt all these years without her mother."

"He could have changed that a long time ago of he really loved her," Miroku said loudly.

Sesshomaru suddenly turned toward Miroku, scaring Sango and Rin. Both women made to restrain the men when they realized Sesshomaru wasn't going to attack.

"I would have had to have known five years ago."

Miroku stared at Sesshomaru in confusion. "What? Can you repeat that?"

"I did not sense this five years ago. I n the past, Inuyasha has proven he was exceptionally powerful, despite being a half-breed. I did not give much thought on the matter when it happened. Kagome is a respectable miko, but I did not feel anything else toward her."

"Nonsense! You were shocked when she kept calling you big brother!" interjected Rin.

He exhaled through his nose, closing his eyes. It looked as if he was slightly embarrassed by the fact. "I began thinking about this only recently. When that foolish wolf youkai was attacked, I began making conclusions-"

"Honestly, do you have a problem with everyone?" Miroku blatantly asked.

"Miroku," warned Sango.

"This appearance by an archer with sacred arrows - very powerful sacred arrows… The archer resembled Kagome-"  
"Are you confirming that the archer is indeed Kagome?" asked Sango.

"Then why would she attack her friend and daughter?" asked Miroku.

Just as Sesshomaru was going to answer, they all heard a soft grunt and a moan. They all turned around to see Inuyasha sitting up and rubbing the top of his head, his eyes fluttering open. "Ohhhh, my head," he moaned.

He rose, still rubbing his head. He looked around at everyone's shocked faces. He was about to ask why they were shocked when his eyes widened, as if he suddenly remembered something important. "Karin…Where is she?"

No one answered. They feared that if they told him where she was, he would waste no time in telling her the new information on Kagome. They couldn't afford to raise her hopes like that. There was a high percent chance that what Sesshomaru said was true, but one could never be too sure.

"WHERE IS SHE?" he demanded.

"W-with Kouga and Miki," stammered Sango.

Without hearing another word, he sped off toward the direction of the hut.

Sango craned her neck, watching him run off. She quickly turned back to Kirara and beckoned her to start flying. "C'mon, Kirara, we have to get there before Yash does!"

In no time, Kirara was soaring through the air as fast as she could, in a frenzied effort to beat the hanyou. Rin watched them fly away before walking over to Ah-Uh, climbing on top of him. Sesshomaru stared at her until she looked at him. "What?" she asked sheepishly.

"Where are you going?"

Rin grabbed the mystical horse demon's reins. "Where else? I'm going to go see Karin. With any luck, I'll make it there before Inuyasha and save everyone the trouble. Are you coming?" He didn't answer. She sighed, pulling the reins back, making Ah-Uh rise slightly. "It would be better if you came, Sess. I need someone to help me finish explaining the story."

As she turned around and started toward Inuyasha's hut, she could hear movement from behind her. Her lips curved up. She leaned forward, urging Ah-Uh to go faster. Her eyebrows knit together as she sped up. _'I cannot even begin to imagine how much pain Inuyasha has suffered since the fire. I hope with Sesshomaru's help we can end_ that."

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**Is this the end of Inuyasha's tipping point moment? Will there be more of them to come? And what else does Sesshomaru have to say? I hope you all are enjoying this story. I love seeing the feedback I get from this as much as I love writing it. I can't stress how grateful I am to you guys. **

**Read and review! Constructive criticism is always welcome. **

**PS: I'm working on getting the next chapter up soon, since I don't have anything to study for now. :D I'm legit dancing around the house because of this. ahahahaha. **


	18. Come Back and Haunt Me

**So much for getting the chapter up on time, eh? At this point, disregard anything I say about a steady update. School and family issues are making it difficult to update on time. Sorry, guys. :( **

**Thanks to Anya Seneca Primrose, xXAnimeChic101Xx, SerenePanic, CityOfFallenAshes, Jess and oldie disk224 for reviewing the last chapter! And a special thanks to everyone who is reading, alerting and favoriting! **

**Also, after the last chapter, I took a look at the reviews and saw that this story is close to a HUNDRED! You all would legit make my day if "Survivor's Guilt" made it to one hundred within the next couple of chapters. *wink wink* **

**Anyway, enjoy the chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha; just my OCs, two of which appear in this chapter. **

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Miroku kept his hands placed firmly on Sango's waist and leaned forward with her. His eyebrows knit together, indicating he was slightly worried and aggravated by the course of events. "Sango, do you believe Rin? That Sesshomaru actually cares about Karin?"

"I don't know," she replied absently. "But I do agree with her when she said he acts differently with her. Oh, the look on his face when she calls him 'Oji-san'! It's too adorable."

"San, it's no enough to blush a little when your niece calls you Oji-san," he said impatiently.

Sango leaned forward, making Kirara dip into a thicket. She rubbed Kirara's fur, murmuring a quiet thanks. "Miroku, we know Sesshomaru doesn't show his emotions. He's not exactly an open book. He has a mask on at all times - except when Rin is around. She's the only one who can get him to willingly shed his mask, but I think that mask has started to crack a little."

He stared at the back of her head in confusion. "Can you explain that? What's with the mask analogy?"

She sighed with a slight smile. "Sesshomaru is known to hide his emotions, and he can do it pretty damn well. He's got a mask on when he's around us. That mask is taken off when Rin is the only one who's around. My guess is that these years, he felt some form of sympathy and pity toward Inuyasha, hence, the cracked mask."

"You're telling me that Sesshomaru is actually taking pity on someone?"

"It's just a guess, Roku. You can't deny that watching Inuyasha struggle through life without Kagome wasn't hard to watch. Sesshomaru isn't entirely cold and heartless."

He mulled over her words for a moment. He knew she was right, but in all honesty, he didn't trust Sesshomaru. This could have been a ploy to get the Tetsusaiga for all they knew. Sesshomaru had a history of doing this like this to Inuyasha in the past. The Tetsusaiga was all he ever really cared about. How was Miroku to know if Sesshomaru was really alright with wielding the Tenseiga?

He supposed this anger stemmed from how close he was to Inuyasha and Karin. Inuyasha was his best friend and had been since they met. They had both been there for each other ever since Miroku was seventeen.

Miroku had tried to collect the shards of the Shikon Jewel when he met Inuyasha and Kagome. After he made off with the jewel shards, Kagome and Inuyasha hunted him down where Inuyasha was nearly sucked into his wind tunnel. Miroku found himself traveling with Inuyasha, Kagome, Shippo and later Sango, despite his preference to work alone. Even in the past, Inuyasha and Kagome were inseparable. Even though Inuyasha was often confused with his past relationship with Kikyo and his budding love for Kagome, he would always find his way back to Kagome.

Miroku was there when Inuyasha and Kagome had finally gotten mated.

_"Ah, Inuyasha, now you can do what married people do on their first night together!" _

_Inuyasha blushed before throwing a hard punch in the lecherous monk's ribs. "Shaddup, ya damn lecher."_

Miroku softly smiled at the memories. He thought about Karin immediately after. When Karin was born, everyone thought she looked just like Kagome - and it was true. Karin had inherited her mother's wavy midnight black hair as well as her warm brown eyes. She had two fuzzy black dog ears perched on her head, much like Inuyasha. He remembered Karin's first transformation.

Kagome was rocking Karin back to sleep. She was having a lot of trouble sleeping that night. Inuyasha and Miroku had been out exorcising demons that night, so it was only her and Sango. Sango tried to rock her to sleep, but nothing worked. After a while, Kagome took Karin to see if she was hungry when she saw a set of fangs. She gasped when Karin's hair slowly turned lighter until it was a soft grey like her father's. At that moment, Karin had stopped crying and opened her eyes wide - her eyes were the color of molten gold. Kagome called Sango over, and marveled in Karin's first transformation.

Miroku and Inuyasha had come home to see Kagome and Sango standing at the entrance of the hut with knowing smiles on their faces. When Karin's story was told, Inuyasha's eyes had misted, and Miroku felt himself grin at his best friend's tears. Inuyasha was tough and crass on the outside, but when it came to Karin or Kagome, that rough exterior slipped away, and in its place was a family man.

That memory slowly slipped out of his mind and was replaced with his anger at Sesshomaru. Karin had gone through the world for so long without her mother. She didn't seem to mind that her mother wasn't there, but there were rare moments where she would ask about Kagome. The atmosphere in the room would become thick with sadness. Inuyasha would quietly excuse himself out of the room and no one would know how to answer. Karin didn't deserve to not know about her mother. She didn't deserve to feel the same pain as Inuyasha.

"Roku, we're here," Sango said, noticing her husband still hadn't realized they landed.

Miroku blinked at her, looking around. He shook his head and slid off Kirara. He turned around and extended his arm to Sango, helping her climb off. His eyebrows were still knit together in concentration. He looked up, his gaze falling on the hut. "Do you think Inuyasha beat us here?" he asked worriedly.

Sango didn't answer him. She raced toward the hut, hoping that the answer wasn't yes. Miroku raced after her, torn between yelling at her for running and finding out the answer for himself. He was horrified to see Inuyasha trying to tear Karin away from Miki and Kouga. Kouga roughly pushed Inuyasha back, standing in front of his mate and 'niece'.

"Inuyasha, what the hell are you doing!" he shouted.

Inuyasha narrowed his amber eyes at Kouga. His anger was slowly attempting to dominate him again - he could feel it. It was slowly turning his amber iris crimson red, and if he looked in a mirror, he was willing to bet his Tetsusaiga that lavender streaks were appearing on his cheeks and that his teeth were sharpening themselves into fangs.

He held a clawed hand up, speaking in a deep and rough voice. "**Get away from my daughter**," he growled, advancing closer to Karin.

Karin hid behind Miki, clutching the furs as close to her as she could. She held the furs over her chocolate-brown eyes and flattened her ebony ears to the top of her head to block out the noise. "Auntie Miki, Daddy's scaring me!"

Miroku and Sango rushed in at that moment. Miroku held his staff threateningly as he stood by Kouga. Sango attempted to coax Karin out of her hiding place so they could play with the other children. She glanced up at Miki when she managed to get Karin to run off into a different room of the hut. "What did Inuyasha do?" she asked in a hushed whisper.

Miki's amethyst eyes were full of fear as she dropped her voice several octaves to make sure they wouldn't be heard by said dog hanyou. "Inuyasha was on the verge of becoming a full demon when he got here. He burst into the hut and demanded that we hand Karin over. Kouga's soft spot for children made his anger toward Inuyasha flare up, and I'm afraid things are going to get worse now."

Sango silently analyzed the situation, making a mental note to fill the younger wolf youkai in when they left the room. "Oh god. Things are worse than I thought - I'll explain when we leave," she said hurriedly as she and Miki escaped the room.

Inuyasha bared his fangs at Miroku and Kouga, looking as if savagery had fully corrupted his judgment. He took a step forward, readying himself for a sneak attack by either men. He snarled at the two men when they didn't move.

"**Give me my daughter**."

Miroku gripped his staff tighter, hoping he would be able to help Inuyasha without hurting him. Kouga, however, didn't seem to be thinking along the same lines as Miroku. When Inuyasha burst into the hut as a full demon, Kouga's senses flared up. He had thrown a worried glance over his shoulder at Miki, who's pupils dilated in fear. He had sprung up with the intention to do anything in his power to make sure he wouldn't harm anyone.

"Inuyasha, calm down," Miroku said cautiously. "You've done a great job of keeping your inner demon in check. Take a minute to slow down. Why do you want Karin?"

"**You stupid monk**," he spat. "**I don't need to explain myself to you. Where is she**?"

Miroku and Kouga held their ground, knowing this was related to Kagome's appearance to him. Seeing Kagome again had made him lose sight of everything he had ever known about her death.

Inuyasha prepared to attack when a new scent mingled with the ones in the room. It made him stop in his tracks, completely confused. The scent was light, lemony and very feminine; it was very familiar. Inuyasha looked up at the entrance of the hut and narrowed his eyes. Abandoning his fight with Kouga and Miroku, he raced out of the hut.

Miroku and Kouga raised their eyebrows at Inuyasha's queer behavior. They glanced at each other, having the same expression on their faces. They raced outside with Inuyasha to see him standing in front of Rin, Sesshomaru and Ah-Uh.

Rin hadn't even gotten off of Ah-Uh when she saw Inuyasha race out of the hut. She was a bit alarmed, but she held her ground. When Ah-Uh landed, Inuyasha stood before Rin looking tame. In fact, he seemed to be returning to his usual hanyou state.

Sesshomaru, who had seen the entire ordeal, narrowed his eyes and held Rin's hand protectively. "What is the meaning of this, Inuyasha? You let your inner demon out twice in the same hour?"

The red had faded from his eyes as well as the lavender from his cheeks. He blinked and looked around him. "Wha-where am I?" He saw Sesshomaru and Rin standing in front of him. He flicked his gaze to his claws, which were growing smaller. He turned around at the sound of footsteps. Miroku and Kouga were drawing closer to him, looking surprised that he had returned to being a hanyou.

"Inuyasha! Y-you're not a full demon!" exclaimed Miroku.

Kouga eyed Rin, suspiciously. "You know, now that I think about it, that lemon scent that came into the hut is coming from you."

Sesshomaru murderously glared at Kouga, shielding Rin. "You dare speak to my mate?" he snarled.

Kouga backed away with a sheepish look on his face. He held his hands up. "I'm not the one who hurt her-"

"Oh? Then who's wolves were they?"

Rin gently tugged on the sleeve of Sesshomaru's kimono. "Not here," she whispered.

But her words were disregarded when Kouga narrowed his eyes. "If I can recall, you were too slow to save her from that demon. Now who was it who saved her?" he asked, placing a finger on his chin in mock thought.

Miroku glared at Kouga and Sesshomaru. "Resume to your age-old feud later." He turned to Rin, who looked relieved that the fight was over. "I do find it odd that Inuyasha was calmed by your scent. Isn't it usually the mate who is able to do that?"

"It is," answered Sesshomaru, glaring at Inuyasha. "Is there something you want to explain to us?"

"I'm not in love with Rin, if that's what you're asking," Inuyasha said pointedly. He sighed, running a hand through his silvery hair. "It's just Rin's always been there for me. Even before you guys got mated. Rin's like the blood relative I've always wanted. She's been so supportive to me when I was going to mate Kagome and after Kagome supposedly died. She… she reminds me of my mom."

Rin held a hand over her heart and smiled gently at Inuyasha. "You really think of me that way?"

"Of course I do. I-" started Inuyasha.

His ears twitched on top of his head. He glanced down, concentrating his hearing on his surroundings.

_Crack. _

His head shot up, scaring everyone.

"Kagome is near," he whispered before bounding into the woods, not letting anyone add their two cents.

Miroku gritted his teeth together, feeling his heart sink. He turned to Kouga, "We have to follow him."

Kouga nodded, tearing off after Inuyasha. Miroku turned to Rin and Sesshomaru. "Sesshomaru?"

Sesshomaru tossed his silvery hair over his shoulder and faced the direction Inuyasha and Kouga had disappeared into. "I am not doing this for you," he stated. "I am doing this because no one deserves to have their family torn apart." He glanced at Rin, placing his hands on her shoulders. "You are to stay here with Sango and the others. I forbid you to step out of that hut and put yourself in harm's way."

Rin solemnly nodded, knowing it would kill Sesshomaru to feel to same pain as Inuyasha. "Of course, Sesshomaru."

The daiyoukai leaned down and pressed a swift kiss to her forehead before standing to his full height and following Inuyasha and Kouga with Miroku not too far behind him.

Rin watched them disappear into the thicket of trees with the same solemn look on her face. "Find her, Sess," she whispered.

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**And as Kagome is sighted again, this story draws to a close... But is it Kagome that was sighted? Or was it someone else? Is Inuyasha truly off his rocker? **

**Alright, enough questions. ;) Hope you all enjoyed the chapter! Read and review! Let's get closer to one hundred with this chapter!**


	19. Warning Sign

**So no update over spring break like I had planned... Instead you all get an update the week after spring break! :D So, I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but since school is closing earlier this year this means that my end of year exams are closer than I would like. Sad to say that this means my updating will be even more turbulent than ever. I hope that you all will stick by me - I know it takes a long time for me to update, but I want you all to know that I am not dropping this story, so you all can be damn well sure I'm going to finish this. **

**Thanks to SerenePanic, CityOfFallenAshes, xXAnimeChic101Xx, AnnaliseismeneRomano, oldie disk224, Mayaceasar, Menarie, letsxgetxrecklessx and SesshandRinforver for reviewing the last chapter! Ninety-nine reviews for SG, WHUT?! I remember a time where I wondered if anyone was reading this! Thank you all so much for reviewing! It means the world to me.**

**And a separate paragraph for a separate thanks to my beautiful beta-reader, Anya Seneca Primrose! Jeez, the fact that you can handle this much suspense and my slight exam-insanity... You should get an award. **

**Enjoy the chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha. Inuyasha (c) Rumiko Takahashi. The kids and Miki (c) lovemondotrasho.**

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Rin watched the men disappear off into the woods, staying where she was for a moment before turning around. She made to go back to the hut like she promised Sesshomaru.

She shut her eyes and held a fist over her heart. She didn't know what it was like for Inuyasha to feel so much pain throughout his widowerhood, but the thought of Karin living without her mother made her succumb to tears.

When she opened her eyes she saw a flash of red dart behind the house. Her eyes widened, and she whipped around, staring at the direction the men had used to pursue 'Kagome'. The area was just the way it was when the men had left. Rubbing her eyes, she walked back to the hut, wondering if it had been a trick of the light.

"I could have sworn I saw red fabric…" she said trailing off.

She stopped dead in her tracks when she heard a light and musical sounding voice.

"Hush little baby, don't say a word. Mama's gonna buy you a mockingbird. And if that mockingbird don't sing, Mama's gonna buy you a diamond ring."

A chill ran through her spine at the sound of the voice. She knew the voice and the song. The song was a lullaby that Kagome would often sing to Karin whenever she wouldn't sleep, and the voice, no doubt about it, belonged to Kagome.

Rin's heart began to pound in her chest, and she didn't know what to do. She didn't think of moving, what with fear paralyzing her. She remained where she was, praying to whatever god was out there that this was all in her head.

Everything was silent again, and Rin began to wonder if she was going mad. She hesitantly took a step forward, cautious of her surroundings. She didn't know if she was being watched, followed or what, but it sure was doing a good job frightening her. Taking advantage of the silence, she darted toward the hut, glad nothing had reached out and grabbed her by the collar.

She was about to sigh in relief when she was in the doorway; that was when she heard the most disturbing thing in her life.

"My name is Kagome. Ka-Go-Meh," the voice said softly.

Rin's breath was caught in her throat as she looked around. Her heart pound in her chest as she ran into the hut, away from the voice.

-x-x-x-x-

Inuyasha raced ahead when he realized the others were following him. He didn't want to be intruded on another moment with Kagome like last time. No, he didn't want to scare her - scaring her was the last thing on his mind. His speed steadily increased as did his wish to see her again.

"Kagome," he whispered.

When he heard the name in the open, it made him feel slightly giddy. He whispered her name again as he kept running. With each syllable, he was running faster and more recklessly. There were suddenly more than a couple of close run-ins with trees.

It was as if he was on a drug. This 'drug' gave him the sweet release that he didn't know he craved for all these years. It was as if all the weight on his shoulders was suddenly lifted, and he was running around without a care in the world. The new feeling was slightly bizarre to him, but he was willing to get used to it.

"I'm going to be reunited with Kagome," he said softly. "It's been so long."

It really had been much too long for Inuyasha. Ever since he had run into the archer way back when, he had a burning desire to be with Kagome again. Now that Sesshomaru supposedly confirmed that she might not have died in the fire, Inuyasha was dead-set on making sure he would never be separated from her.

"Now we'll never be separated again, Kagome," he whispered into the air. "Isn't that great? It'll just be you, me and Karin. Just like the way things were when Karin was little."

He ran around a thicket of trees, suddenly stopping and looking around. He seemed to have had a horrible epiphany. He quickly glanced over his shoulder, his silver hair whipping the air.

"Kagome," he whispered.

He slowly shut his eyes and concentrated on the air around him. After a moment, his eyes snapped open, unable to detect where Kagome had gone.

"Kagome," whispered Inuyasha.

He circled around, trying to pick up the scent he had followed here when it hit him.

He _hadn't_ followed a scent here. He had just followed his own blind wish to God knows where. Thoughts mingled with his growing panic as he continued to circle around the small area of trees. His heart beat faster in his chest when he thought of the possibility of Kagome not being here. Was he losing his mind? Was that it? Then what was a reality? His breath began to quicken and the forest seemed to swallow him, enclosing him in the tightest area possible. He found it getting harder and harder to breath freely. It was as if there was a metal chain, wrapping itself tighter and tighter around his lungs, coiling itself until there was nothing left to coil around.

His mind was slowly wiped clean. He didn't know where he was or what he was doing. The sense of panic was in his heart and slowly taking over his mind. He didn't know why he was panicking so much now. The anxiety that was slowly overwhelming him was beginning to grow unbearable. He felt his throat begin to tighten and something sting in his eyes. He was completely helpless.

There was an incessant tapping that reached Inuyasha's ears, pushing him over the edge. At that moment, everything within the hanyou broke loose. Nothing was making sense anymore. He sank to the ground, clutching his knees to his chest and biting his lower lip. He squeezed his eyes shut and mentally chanted, 'make it go away', slowly making it his mantra. He just wanted something to take the feeling in his heart away. It was making him go into a fight or flight mood.

A strangled noise tore from his throat, echoing against the various tree trunks that surrounded him. He buried his face in the fire-red hakamas he wore, not even noticing the dark red spots that were already there from the tears he had shed.

The noises were growing louder and more consistent, but all it did for Inuyasha was drive him mad. He felt his throat tighten even more, and he felt even more hopeless. He grabbed at his silver hair as if he was going to pull the strands out. His eyebrows furrowed and he squeezed his eyes shut even tighter. He gritted his teeth and tried to block out the noise.

'Go away. Make the noises go away.'

The noises belonged to Kouga, Miroku and Sesshomaru, who stopped dead in their tracks when they saw Inuyasha's state. Kouga, who had reached Inuyasha first, stopped completely, grinding his heels against the grass, prompting Miroku and Sesshomaru to stop as well. Kouga glanced over his shoulder, his ponytail flipping wildly.

"What's going on with Inuyasha?" he asked, his voice full of concern.

Miroku's gaze was transfixed on his, finally broken, best friend. Sesshomaru stood where he stopped. There was a rare moment where pity seemed to grace his delicate and sculpted face. His mouth was slightly agape, as if he was in shock. His shoulders seemed to go slack and his face was almost impassive if it weren't for his eyes. His eyes betray his face and showed the tiniest bit of sadness for the broken hanyou.

Without thinking, Sesshomaru made his way toward Inuyasha, worrying Kouga and Miroku. His face was back to its impassive state. He knelt by Inuyasha, using a voice that was slightly rough, but not too rough.

"Inuyasha," he whispered. "Sobbing like a weakling will not get Kagome back to you. You have become a shell of your former self. How is she to recognize you when you cannot even recognize yourself?"

"Sesshomaru," Miroku said warningly. He made to pull Sesshomaru away when Kouga held him back.

Kouga's cerulean eyes rested on Inuyasha and Sesshomaru, silently telling Miroku that this is what Inuyasha needed. That Sesshomaru didn't mean any malicious intent with what he said, and by Sesshoamru's standards, this was merely like a pep talk to get Inuyasha to see the big picture; to get him to feel more open-minded and not close-minded like he had felt in the past couple of days.

"Yash needs to hear this from someone," Kouga said softly. "And who better to tell him than his older brother?"

Miroku slowly nodded, still watching Sesshomaru closely. The fact of the matter was that Miroku still didn't trust Sesshomaru's intentions. Sesshomaru might have acted like he wanted to help Inuyasha, but Miroku still felt that there was a part of Sesshomaru that wanted the Tetsusaiga and would stop at nothing to make sure it was by his side.

Inuyasha refused to hear Sesshomaru's words. He didn't care for them before, so what made Sesshomaru think he cared for them now?

Inuyasha just wanted everything around him to stop - just stop completely. The world would be a better place if everything just stayed where it was. Finding Kagome was turning out to be a wild goose chase, and he doubted he would ever find her. There was a faint glow of hope in the pit of his stomach that he would be able to find her, but the heavy, overbearing desire for everything to cease outweighed his sliver of hope.

Even so, he heard a few choice words from Sesshomaru.

Kagome. Back. Shell. Recognize.

How had he come to this point? How had he gone from a hanyou with an absolutely perfect life in the world to the broken hanyou who had lost nearly everything? Losing his mother didn't hurt this much. Losing his father hurt more than losing his mother, but it could not be compared to the pain he was feeling now.

His head started to spin, and he wanted nothing more than to take the Tetsusaiga and run the blade down his wrists, so it could taste his crimson blood.

_Blood._

The word wouldn't have ordinarily struck a handful of memories in his mind. Broken shards of his life flashed before his eyes. Kagome sleeping in their bed with his robe of the Fire Rat draped over her. Her beautiful smile when she saw Karin smile for the first time. The tears that he had gently wiped away when she left her home, a mated woman. The day Karin was born. The moment he had held Karin in his arms. The moment he saw her smile in her sleep and realized that her fragile life was in his hands.

Karin. Karin. Karin.

He felt ashamed for wanting to sever the tie between life and death without even thinking about Karin. How had he even _contemplated_ choosing death over his daughter? What kind of father was he?

Minute by minute, he asked himself the same question over and over. His head continued to spin, and his heart beat harder than it had ever beat before. Nonetheless, he slowly rose, a hard look on his face. No emotion was present other than anger at himself, present in his furrowed eyebrows and fiery, amber iris.

"Karin," he said finally, startling the three men behind him. "I need to see Karin."

-x-x-x-x-

Rin cautiously walked into the house, glancing over her shoulder every so often. She couldn't be sure that what she saw was simply a trick of the light. At the same time, she was almost positive that she had seen something move by the hut, and she had an inkling it was Kagome, the mere thought frightening her. Kagome was kind in her life, but the way "she" was described now made her seem like the most malicious and sadistic figure Rin had ever heard of. This version of Kagome allegedly attempted to attack Karin and successfully attacked Miki. Rin shook her head, rubbing her arms as if a sudden cold breeze had hit her. She hated to think of what would happen if Kouga hadn't found Miki.

She tread carefully about the house, making her way into the room that was farthest back from the entrance of the hut. She peeked inside and saw Sango and Miki playing with the children. She stood in the doorway for a minute, watching the children color and play, slightly jealous of Sango's bulging stomach. She looked down at her own flat stomach, feeling a flutter. She and Sesshomaru had only been mated recently, and they hadn't really talked about having any children. She knew Sesshomaru wanted a child to carry the family line, but she wasn't sure if he intended for the child to be a hanyou like Inuyasha. Sesshomaru had always looked down at anyone that wasn't pure demon like him. The mere fact that he, of all people, had mated a human baffled everyone, including Rin.

She thought back to when the Shikon Jewel had disappeared and when Kagome came back to their time. Sesshomaru would always visit Rin when she was with Kaede. While she was with Kaede, she had learned what herbs and roots were required to do different things. As she learned from Kaede, she would often receive visits from Sesshomaru, something that surprised and amused Kaede. Rin was only a child, barely ten years old when she had received her first gift from Sesshomaru - a pretty pink kimono with tiny white sakuras patterned all over it. It was the first real kimono that Rin had ever received, and she treasured it to this very day, even if it didn't fit anymore.

She had always wondered what Sesshomaru saw in her. She had assisted him when he found her, nearly dead. He had revived her with his sword, and for that she was forever grateful and in debt to him. As a child, she knew Sesshomaru was exceptionally gentle with her, going to great lengths to protect her, even battling Kouga, the leader of the wolves who had attacked her, several times before now.

But what made Sesshomaru want to mate her, a human?

Miki glanced up at Rin, who was deep in thought. Mindful of the injuries on her back, she slowly rose, walking toward Rin.

"What's wrong, Rin?" she asked. "You look deep in thought."

Sango looked up as well, resting her palms against the ground for support.

Rin couldn't find the answer the question she was asked. There were a lot of things that bothered her about her mating Sesshomaru and she couldn't find just one answer.

"Why did Sesshomaru mate me?" she blurted.

Silence rang throughout the room, save the happy giggling and gurgling from the children. Miki turned around to Sango, who wore a puzzled expression on her face. Rin wanted to melt into the walls of the hut. She wanted to run away from the two older women. She wanted to at least stop blushing and feel an uncomfortable warmth surround her.

"Whatever are you talking about?" Miki asked finally. "Sesshomaru mated you because, from what I heard before mating Kouga, he has always had a soft spot for you."

Sango pushed off the ground and cautiously walked toward Rin and Miki. "She's right, Rin. When you were assisting Kaede and even I, Sesshomaru couldn't stop visiting you at least once a week. Don't you remember the presents he would bring for you?"

"But I don't understand," Rin replied impatiently. "Why me?"

"Rin, Sesshomaru has learned a lot from you, whether you want to believe it or not. He's learned that blood, be it pure or mixed, doesn't matter when it comes to the one you love," said Sango. "Sure he didn't know what he was doing when he first revived you, but you stuck to him in a way that no one else could. You slowly coaxed him out of that cold and hard shell of his and forced him to realize that demon loving a human can happen."

Rin felt a familiar warmth spread across her cheeks at Miki and Sango's knowing smiles. "I-I did that to Sesshomaru? I'm just… me."

"Just you is a hell a lot stronger than anything else The Lord of the West has been able to handle," Miki said idly.

Before Rin could respond, she felt a tug on her kimono. She looked down and saw the sweet, angelic face of her niece. She smiled, kneeling so they were eye level.

"Hi, Karin," Rin said softly. "What's wrong?"

"I'm hungry," Karin said, rubbing a small hand across her stomach. "Can you make Ramen the way Daddy does?"

Rin's expression blanked for a moment as she tried to explain to Karin that she had never made Ramen in her life when Karin reached forward and tugged on Rin's hand, leading her out of the room.

"Don't worry," assured Karin happily. "I'll tell you what to do!"

"O-Okay," Rin replied.

Karin grabbed a pitcher of water and handed it to Rin, trying her very best to not slosh any of the water anywhere. "Daddy always puts the water on that round thing. The one with the spinny button and the numbers."

"This thing?" Rin asked, gesturing at the small black rectangle with two coils on it.

"Yeah. Now you just put some of the water in the cup beside it and then put the cup on the round thing."

Rin followed the directions, pouring the water in the small kettle that Karin had pointed out and placed the kettle on the coil. "Okay, now what?"

Karin tapped her chin thoughtfully, thinking about what her own father would do. "Oh, Daddy turns that spinny button to the number… um… number five, I think."

Rin laughed, spinning the dial toward the number. "Alright. Spinny button on five. Now what?"

"Now Daddy gets the cup of Ramen!" Karin exclaimed excitedly. "He puts them in the big wooden box that's over there," Karin explained gesturing into the next room. "He puts them high up so that I don't try to take a cup," she said ruefully.

Rin couldn't help but laugh at her niece and ruffle her inky black hair. "Oh, Karin, that's alright. So it's in that wooden box there? Oh, I remember that… It was a wedding present from your grandmother…" she said trailing off.

Rin got up on her feet and walked into the next room. She pulled the wooden door open, revealing more than enough Ramen to last a couple of months. Or a year. Rin silently chuckled at her brother-in-law's antics. "Karin, which one do you want? There are so many different kinds here."

Rin's eyebrows furrowed together when she didn't hear anything. "Karin, which flavor do you want?" she tried again.

Nothing.

Rin was growing worried. What if what she had seen by the hut was the same figure that had attacked Miki. She bolted out of the room and saw that Karin was nowhere in sight. Her heart began to pound in her chest as she raced toward the room where Sango and Miki were playing with the kids.

Sango and Miki heard frantic footsteps and they both rose, completely baffled as to why Rin was out of breath and her hair was flying all over the place.

"Rin," Sango asked cautiously. "What happened?"

Rin panted heavily, wildly looking around. When she met the older woman's gaze, she held her head. "Karin's gone," she whispered.

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**Dun. Dun. DUN! What does this mean for everyone? *hides from readers* I'm sorry for another cliffie, guise. Maybe. ;D But I'm not kidding when I say that this little "kidnapping" leads into some major question answering chapters. This "kidnapping" might be what you all are looking for when you guys keep asking me where Kagome is or if she's still alive... **

**On the other hand, since this story will be coming to a close soon (I'm thinking about seven or so chapters left...), I'm spitballing a couple of new story ideas. The one that's taking most of my interest is an AU MirSan story - it'll probably be pretty dark in nature, but it's not anything too bad. Maybe a little suggestive at times...**

**Hope you all enjoyed this chapter! Read and review~!**


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